Virginia Business Archives - Page 225 of 380

Economic Development

TAYLOR ADAMS

DIRECTOR, VIRGINIA BEACH DEPARTMENT OF ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT VIRGINIA BEACH

Under Adams’ leadership, Virginia Beach has seen several company expansions and relocations over the last year, even in the current economic crisis.

In June and July alone, nine companies announced they would either locate facilities or expand in the city. Ranging from manufacturing and biomedical to defense contractors, the businesses plan to add a total of 756 jobs and make capital investments of more than $136 million.

“It is encouraging to see this kind of robust and diverse business activity during an extremely challenging time in our history. It underscores our fundamental strength as an economic center and as a community of choice,” Adams said.

Adams was unexpectedly promoted to economic development director in 2018, after his predecessor, Warren Harris, resigned during an audit. Harris was later indicted on 14 counts of embezzlement, with a trial set for October.

Adams joined the department as Virginia Beach’s purchasing agent in 2015 and was promoted within two years to finance operations administrator, lauded for including more minority- and women-owned companies in contracting and procurement.

He came to Virginia after serving in public and private sector positions in his native Mississippi, where he graduated from Mississippi State University.

R. BRIAN BALL

SECRETARY OF COMMERCE AND TRADE, COMMONWEALTH OF VIRGINIA, RICHMOND

After working in the private sector for more than 40 years, former Williams Mullen corporate attorney Ball became the state’s point man for commerce in 2018. Also serving as vice chair of the Virginia Economic Development Partnership, the University of Virginia graduate has had direct involvement in securing several big-ticket projects: Amazon’s HQ2 East Coast headquarters in Arlington ($2.5 billion in capital investment, 25,000+ jobs), the Micron Technology Inc. expansion in Manassas ($3 billion, 1,100 jobs), Volvo’s overhaul of its Pulaski County truck factory ($400 million, 777 jobs) and Morgan Olson’s van assembly plant located at the former Ikea facility in Pittsylvania County ($58 million, 703 jobs).

BEST ADVICE: Fight for context in your decision-making process. Being too narrowly focused often results in inadvisable decisions.

MY PASSION: Anything outdoors, especially bird hunting, fishing, bird watching and hiking

PERSON I ADMIRE AND WHY: Winston Churchill. A complicated and imperfect person but one to whom we owe a great debt of gratitude for his leadership and unwavering commitment to freedom during WWII.

SOMETHING I WOULD NEVER DO AGAIN: Leave Virginia.

BARRY DuVAL

PRESIDENT AND CEO, VIRGINIA CHAMBER OF COMMERCE, RICHMOND

DuVal served as mayor of Newport News from 1990 to 1996 and served as Virginia secretary of commerce and trade for four years, so he knows how government and business can work together — or not. Since he began leading the Virginia Chamber in 2010, its membership has grown from 847 members to more than 26,000, making it the state’s leading nonpartisan business advocacy organization. He also serves on the boards of Lead Virginia, the GO Virginia Foundation and the Virginia Economic Developers Association. Among the many initiatives that the James Madison University and American University graduate has fostered is Blueprint Virginia, a comprehensive long-range plan for Virginia businesses that has collaborative buy-in from more than 6,000 statewide leaders.

FIRST JOB: Paper route carrier

BEST ADVICE: Commit your life to the purpose of serving people and to improving the community where you live.

I ADMIRE: My father, who invested a lifetime of service to his family and country as a veteran of two major wars

MOST RECENT BOOK READ: “The Lion’s Den, A Story of American Renewal,” by Frank B. Atkinson

LARA L. FRITTS

PRESIDENT AND CEO, GREATER RICHMOND PARTNERSHIP, RICHMOND

A Green Bay, Wisconsin, native and product of the University of Wisconsin system, Fritts came to Richmond in August 2019 after a successful stint as director of Salt Lake City’s Department of Economic Development, as well as various positions with several economic groups in the D.C. region, including as president and CEO of the Annapolis Economic Development Corp. and president of the Washington D.C. Technology Council. Fritts sits on the board of the International Economic Development Council and has been involved in supporting Junior Achievement for 30 years — her first college scholarships were funded through the nonprofit.

FIRST JOB: Golf caddy. My income was solely from the tips, but the real perk was being able to golf free two days a week.

WHAT A COMPETITOR WOULD SAY ABOUT ME: They’d appreciate how competitive I am. Part of why I love what I do is getting the “win.”

I ADMIRE: Ruth Bader Ginsburg. She’s broken so many barriers for women, made history in her own right and continues to fight for rights and equality.

FAVORITE SONG: “Lara’s Theme” from “Doctor Zhivago.” The movie was my parents’ first date and every music box I own plays it.

SOL GLASNER

PRESIDENT AND CEO, TYSONS PARTNERSHIP, TYSONS

Glasner is synonymous with Tysons Partnership. He helped found the nonprofit association of Tysons business, government and civic leaders in 2012.

He and his group face the formidable task of helping to transform a 4-square-mile swath of Northern Virginia into the downtown of Fairfax County — a real livable, walkable urban center — by 2050. And it’s well on its way there.

Tysons is home to the massive Tysons Corner Center mall as well as five Fortune 500 firms, including DXC Technology, Capital One Financial Corp. and Freddie Mac. The residents, and a diverse array of small businesses, have been slower to follow. Complicating the area’s comeback from COVID-19 has been the Metro’s closing of its Tysons stop due to construction and the pandemic this summer. It’s a good thing Glasner can keep his head.

By day, the Georgetown Law Center graduate is a trained mediator with his own practice offering mediation and dispute resolution options to courts and private companies.

H. GARRETT HART III

DIRECTOR, CHESTERFIELD COUNTY ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT, CHESTERFIELD

In 2019, nine different companies announced they were investing $248.85 million toward new facilities and plants in Chesterfield, resulting in an estimated 1,959 new jobs. Highlights include projects from Richmond-based Shamin Hotels and Mexico-based packager Cartograf.

This year, DuPont, one of the county’s largest employers, with more than 2,000 workers, announced in January that it would be investing $75 million to modernize its Spruance manufacturing plant. And in June, developers secured approval for Courthouse Landing, a mixed-use development incorporating a 120-room hotel and nearly $265,000 square feet of retail on 124 acres near the county courthouse.

A Virginia Tech graduate, Hart came to the EDA in 2015 after serving as Louisa’s first town manager. He is the former county administrator for New Kent County and also worked for the Virginia Peninsula Economic Development Council. He is a past board chairman for the Southern Economic Development Council.

FAVORITE VACATION DESTINATION(S): Beach house with the grandchildren

SOMETHING I WOULD NEVER DO AGAIN: Be a county administrator.

TODD P. HAYMORE

MANAGING DIRECTOR, GLOBAL ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT, COMMERCE & GOVERNMENT RELATIONS PRACTICE, HUNTON ANDREWS KURTH LLP, RICHMOND

In his current role, the former Virginia secretary of commerce and trade helps businesses navigate government roadblocks to growth and development. A Virginia Commonwealth University and University of Richmond graduate, Haymore previously worked in state government under three different governors, also serving as secretary of agriculture and forestry and commissioner of the Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services. He sits on the Virginia Chamber of Commerce board and on VCU’s board of visitors.

FIRST JOB: At 8, working at my uncle’s leaf tobacco warehouse outside of Danville. I made $20 a week and felt like a millionaire.

WHAT I’VE LEARNED: Have an open mind about all things in life, continue to educate yourself about these things and never stop learning.

FAVORITE SONG: “See a Little Light,” by Bob Mould and “Eyes of the World,” by the Grateful Dead. I’d like to think both reflect the optimism I carry in life.

WHAT YOU WOULD CHANGE ABOUT VIRGINIA: I would change Virginia’s single four-year gubernatorial terms to a single five- or six-year term. Having worked for three governors, I know how difficult it is to set up an administration, develop an agenda and deliver upon it in just four years.

VICTOR HOSKINS

PRESIDENT AND CEO, FAIRFAX COUNTY ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT AUTHORITY, FAIRFAX

When he served as the head of Arlington Economic Development, Hoskins was a catalyst behind landing the $2.5 billion Amazon HQ2 deal. As the leader of the Fairfax EDA, which he joined in 2019, he hit the ground running with a $64 million Microsoft deal to build a 400,000-square-foot software R&D center that will bring 1,500 jobs to the area. Hoskins, who earned his master’s degree in real estate finance and economic development from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, has the magic touch. Since he arrived, Facebook, Google and Amazon Web Services have been among the companies also opening locations in Fairfax.

FIRST JOB WITH A PAY STUB: Assistant manager at a Taco Bell at age 16

WHAT A COMPETITOR WOULD SAY: He is willing to help anyone who asks.

I ADMIRE: James Hankla, former city manager for the city of Long Beach, California. He was a role model and a mentor who helped me forge my career and he fueled my desire to impact the economies of cities to create jobs and opportunities for others.

WHAT I’VE LEARNED: Steady plodding leads to prosperity; speculation leads to poverty.

TERRY KILGORE

CHAIRMAN, VIRGINIA TOBACCO REGION REVITALIZATION COMMISSION, GATE CITY

Despite Democrats holding a majority in the General Assembly this year, state legislators reappointed Republican state Del. Kilgore as chairman of the state-funded Virginia Tobacco Region Revitalization Commission. Created in 1999 and funded through Virginia’s share of a national settlement with tobacco manufacturers over smoking-related health costs, the commission promotes growth and development in formerly tobacco-dependent locales. In the last two decades, it has issued more than 2,200 grants across Southern and Southwest Virginia totaling more than $1.1 billion. It also has awarded $309 million in payments to tobacco growers.

Another initiative is the commission’s tobacco scholarship fund, which helps former Virginia resident tobacco growers, quota holders and their family members earn bachelor’s degrees. The commission also directly spurs development. Earlier this year, it awarded a $302,000 grant toward the construction of the $2.88 million Floyd Growth Center.

Kilgore earned his law degree from William & Mary and has been a member of the Virginia House of Delegates since 1994, representing Scott and Lee counties and part of Wise, including Norton. He also heads the Coal and Energy Commission and the Southwest Virginia Health Authority.

STEPHANIE LANDRUM

PRESIDENT AND CEO, ALEXANDRIA ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT PARTNERSHIP, ALEXANDRIA

For her pivotal roles in brokering Virginia Tech’s $1 billion Innovation Campus in Alexandria and neighboring Arlington’s $2.5 billion Amazon HQ2 East Coast headquarters, Landrum was celebrated as the Alexandria Chamber of Commerce’s 2019 Business Leader of the Year, the first female
so honored.

Heading up the Alexandria Economic Development Partnership since 2015, the University of Virginia Darden School of Business graduate was born at Inova Alexandria Hospital and grew up in the Mount Vernon area. She spent more than six years with the Southeast Fairfax Development Corp., a nonprofit advocacy group for the revitalization of Route 1, before joining AEDP as senior vice president.

In June, Alexandria launched a $4.4 million Alexandria Back to Business grant program, which will issue loans of up to $20,000 for small businesses affected by the economic impacts of COVID-19. Funded by the federal CARES Act, the loans will be administered through the partnership.

She recently served as president of the Virginia Economic Development Association’s board and is chair of its nominating committee. Landrum also was a regional fellow of the Urban Land Institute.

JACK McDOUGLE

PRESIDENT AND CEO, GREATER WASHINGTON BOARD OF TRADE, WASHINGTON, D.C.

Change agent McDougle has been charged with bringing the Greater Washington Board of Trade into the 21st century while fostering collaborations between government, business groups and community leaders in the D.C. region.

He also is making a difference as co-founder of Connected DMV. A nonprofit launched by McDougle and the Greater Washington Board of Trade, Connected DMV seeks to steer Virginia, Maryland and Washington, D.C., toward common goals, programs and approaches. The nonprofit’s COVID-19 DMV Renewal Strategic Task Force is a subcommittee of more than 50 government and business leaders. Facilitated by McDougle, the task force works closely with the administrations of Gov. Ralph Northam, Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan and D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser and plans to present strategies and recommendations later this year for the region’s post-pandemic economic recovery.

McDougle founded the innovation-focused New York-based Blutre Inc. in 2009 after serving as deputy undersecretary for economic affairs for the U.S. Department of Commerce. While he was senior vice president at the Council on Competitiveness, he formed the U.S. Manufacturing Competitiveness Initiative, a strategy for strengthening U.S. manufacturing exports and job creation.

STEPHEN MORET

PRESIDENT AND CEO, VIRGINIA ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT PARTNERSHIP, RICHMOND

Born in Mississippi, the great-grandson of former sharecroppers, Moret has run the Virginia Economic Development Partnership since 2017 and spearheaded Virginia’s successful effort competing with practically every other state to land Amazon’s $2.5 billion HQ2 East Coast headquarters in Arlington. That deal was a key reason why Virginia regained its No. 1 ranking in CNBC’s 2019 Top States for Business report.

Last year, Moret launched the state’s new Virginia Talent Accelerator Program, a customized accelerated employee recruitment and training program to entice outside firms. It’s already scored successes — Morgan Olson LLC, North America’s largest manufacturer of walk-in delivery vans, is using the program to facilitate the training of 350 full-time workers for its new $57.8 million vehicle assembly plant near Danville.

Created by the Virginia General Assembly, with international offices in Germany, Japan and South Korea, VEDP actively stimulates and supports Virginia’s economy with services including workforce training and negotiating with economic development prospects.

Moret earned his MBA from Harvard Business School and came to VEDP from Louisiana, where he was student body president at his alma mater, Louisiana State University, and served as secretary
of economic development.

MICHAEL J. ‘MIKE’ QUILLEN

CHAIRMAN, GO VIRGINIA REGION 1 COUNCIL, BRISTOL

Quillen founded Abingdon’s Alpha Natural Resources in 2002 and was the coal producer’s first CEO. Under his leadership, it grew into a Fortune 500 company with 13,000 employees within a decade.

He retired in 2012, but you’d never know it. Quillen leads the GO Virginia Region 1 Council, which makes recommendations for state economic development grants for projects in Southwest Virginia. He’s also chairman of the Virginia Energy Advisory Council and serves on the corporate board of Martin Marietta, a Raleigh, North Carolina-based building materials company with operations in 25 states. For nine years, he was a member of the Virginia Port Authority’s board of commissioners, two of those as its chairman.

He earned his bachelor’s and master’s degrees in civil engineering from Virginia Tech and was honored in May with the William H. Ruffner Medal, the school’s highest honor. Quillen has served as rector of the Board of Visitors at Tech. He has also sat on advisory boards for the Tech College of Engineering and Alumni Association and chaired the school’s finance and building committees.

BUDDY RIZER

EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, LOUDOUN COUNTY ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT, LOUDOUN COUNTY

As the head of Loudoun’s EDA, Rizer, a former disc jockey and radio station owner, has helped to turn the county into “Data Center Alley” — the biggest destination in the world for massive cloud data storage centers run by companies like Amazon, Microsoft and Google. And that’s no coincidence. About 70% of the world’s internet traffic flows through the county’s Ashburn area. Rizer, the self-styled “Godfather of Data Center Alley,” has helped attract more than $25 billion in investment to the region. A product of Towson University and Virginia Tech’s Local Government Management certificate program, Rizer sits on the boards of the Northern Virginia Technology Council and the Northern Virginia Community College Foundation.

FAVORITE SONG: “Wild Horses,” by the Rolling Stones

RECENT READING: “The Splendid and the Vile: A Saga of Churchill, Family, and Defiance During the Blitz,” by Erik Larson

ONE THING YOU WOULD CHANGE ABOUT VIRGINIA: Virginia is its best when we act as one. While my job is to promote Loudoun, I recognize we all have a vested interest in Virginia’s economic development success.

ANTHONY J. ROMANELLO

EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, HENRICO ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT AUTHORITY, HENRICO COUNTY

Former Deputy County Manager Romanello may be new to Henrico’s EDA, but he’s a familiar face to the region, with 26 years of experience in local government. Romanello has been town manager of West Point and served in a variety of functions, including assistant city manager, for the city of Richmond. Henrico, now home to the second largest concentration of jobs in Virginia (193,000), has been active with new economic development notices, including the June announcement that ASGN Inc. will move its corporate headquarters to Henrico, creating a total of 700 jobs statewide.

A 2015 recipient of the Boy Scouts of America’s Outstanding Eagle Scout Award for distinguished service, Romanello earned his bachelor’s degree from Virginia Commonwealth University and his master’s degree from the University of Virginia.

BEST ADVICE: “Patience attains all that it strives for.”- St. Teresa of Avila

I ADMIRE: My wife, Diane. She cares for five children (ages 24 to 2 1/2), and her ailing mother and has survived life with me for over 27 years.

RECENT LIFE EXPERIENCE: Becoming foster parents and adopting an 11-day-old girl.

ONE THING YOU WOULD CHANGE ABOUT VIRGINIA: We need a second interstate to parallel I-95.

MATTHEW ROWE

DIRECTOR OF ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT, PITTSYLVANIA COUNTY

Last year, Pittsylvania County and the city of Danville were recognized by Site Selection Magazine as the No. 6 micropolitan area in the nation for businesses to locate. Rowe and his staff know how to attract heavy hitters. Dominion Energy announced last year that it would be investing in two solar energy plants in the region and van manufacturer Morgan Olson moved into the former Ikea plant with plans to create more than 700 jobs. Rowe, who received his bachelor’s degree in environmental science and public policy from William & Mary and his master’s in public administration from Virginia Tech, also is board chairman of the Southern Virginia Regional Alliance.

BEST ADVICE: Never be afraid to ask questions and always try your best to be a team player. Lose the ego.

FIRST JOB: Working with my father on the Chesapeake Bay/Potomac River as a commercial waterman and charter boat mate

NEW LIFE EXPERIENCE: My wife and I are expecting our first child — a baby girl.

FAVORITE VACATION DESTINATIONS: Lisbon, Portugal, and nearby beaches

LEONARD SLEDGE

DIRECTOR, DEPARTMENT OF ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT, CITY OF RICHMOND

Although Richmond’s proposed $1.5 billion Navy Hill development was nixed in February, Sledge and Richmond economic development officials have been working to move forward with a plan by Capital City Partners to develop a 3-acre downtown site surrounding the Public Safety Building — part of the Navy Hill parcel — with a $350 million mixed-use project anchored by VCU Health.

Sledge, previously an economic development director for Henry County, Georgia, and the city of Hampton, has had a lot on his plate as Richmond deals with the pandemic. His office has offered grants for up to $20,000 to city businesses affected by COVID-19 closures and has been tasked with delivering $500,000 in CARES Act grants to shops damaged by recent protests. He earned undergraduate degrees from Morehouse College and Georgia Tech and received his MBA from the University of Phoenix.

FIRST JOB: Paperboy for the Daily Press

I ADMIRE: My children, Amariah, Solomon and Simeon. They each inspire me to be a better person each day to make a meaningful impact on the world we live in.

ONE THING YOU WOULD CHANGE ABOUT VIRGINIA: Equitable economic growth for all Virginians

DOUGLAS L. ‘DOUG’ SMITH

PRESIDENT AND CEO, HAMPTON ROADS ALLIANCE, NORFOLK

Formerly the Hampton Roads Economic Development Alliance, the organization has been in total makeover mode lately, debuting a new name and a revamped board, funding stream and staff, including a new leader seasoned in governance and politics. Smith, who took charge in September 2019, previously served in city management in Norfolk, Portsmouth and Virginia Beach, and was a Portsmouth city councilor. He also was president and CEO of Kaufman & Canoles Consulting. The University of Virginia graduate started his professional life in banking as an assistant vice president at First Union Banking. He also has been a commissioner for the Hampton Roads Transportation Planning Organization and the Hampton Roads Planning District Commission.

NEW LIFE EXPERIENCE: The COVID-19 health and economic crisis changed everything. Working from home with two school-age children (and my wife) has been a unique experience for all of us.

FAVORITE SPORTS TEAM: U.Va. Cavaliers in any sport

SOMETHING I WOULD NEVER DO AGAIN: Run for political office.

ONE THING YOU WOULD CHANGE ABOUT VIRGINIA: The Dillon Rule

RAYMOND SMOOT

CHAIR, GO VIRGINIA REGION 2 COUNCIL, BLACKSBURG

Need a steady hand on your board? Call Smoot. The former board chairman for Atlantic Union Bankshares, the Lynchburg native is a director of the Virginia College of Osteopathic Medicine and the chair of Carilion Clinic’s finance committee. He’s also a past chair of the Investment Committee of the Virginia Retirement System, one of the largest pension funds in the country.

As head of the GO Virginia Region 2 council, Smoot has helped direct millions in state economic development investments to projects in a 13-county, five-city region that includes Roanoke and Blacksburg. Last year, GO Virginia awarded Virginia Tech $546,000 to initiate a technology talent pipeline and to create a blockchain ecosystem catalyst program. In June, Region 2 received $97,200 from the state in a deal partnered with the Roanoke-Blacksburg Technology Council to assist businesses affected by the pandemic. Region 2 and Virginia Tech also received $100,000 to help deliver timely COVID-19 test results to regional health districts.

Smoot’s name is synonymous with Virginia Tech, from which he earned bachelor’s and master’s degrees, and served for years as CEO and treasurer of the Virginia Tech Foundation while also logging time as vice president for administration.

JAMES SPORE

PRESIDENT AND CEO, REINVENT HAMPTON ROADS, NORFOLK

Spore served for nearly 25 years as Virginia Beach’s city manager, overseeing nearly a half-million residents, four military installations and millions of annual beach tourists. Today, he leads Reinvent Hampton Roads, a nonprofit community group that assists with regional job creation and functions as GO Virginia Region 5’s support arm. Reinvent Hampton Roads recently partnered with Virginia Beach-based Elevate U on an onboarding web platform for employers and job seekers that streamlines the hiring and vetting processes. An influential presence on a number of area boards and commissions — including the United Way of South Hampton Roads, the Virginia Symphony Orchestra and Hospice House of Hampton Roads — Spore earned his master’s and bachelor’s degrees in urban planning from the University of Illinois and his master’s of public administration from the University of Colorado.

BEST ADVICE: Focus on making a difference and don’t care about who gets the credit.

FIRST JOB: City management intern

MOST RECENT BOOK READ: “The Education of an Idealist: A Memoir,” by Samantha Power

WHAT I’VE LEARNED: Dedication to a cause bigger than yourself is the key to real happiness.

BRYAN K. STEPHENS

PRESIDENT AND CEO, HAMPTON ROADS CHAMBER, NORFOLK

Talk about a career change. After a 28-year stint with the U.S. Army, leaving as a colonel, Stephens emerged as president and CEO of Kalmar, a Texas-based equipment manufacturer. Since he began leading the charge at the Hampton Roads Chamber in 2013, the business advocacy group has been awarded a five-star accreditation rating from the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, a designation extended to only the top 1% of regional chambers across the nation. One of Stephens’ tasks as of late is helping the local economy deal with COVID-19. The chamber issued an online business recovery guide, walking business owners through responsible re-entry into the workplace as well as providing a central stop for information about grant applications, tax extensions and assistance loans.

WHAT WOULD A COMPETITOR SAY ABOUT YOU? “He’s a strong leader, ethical and trustworthy.”

I ADMIRE: Ronald Reagan and John F. Kennedy. Strong, principled leaders.

MOST RECENT BOOK READ: “Building a Vibrant Community: How Citizen-Powered Change Is Reshaping America,” by Quint Studer

RECENT LIFE EXPERIENCE: A new grandson

TELLY TUCKER

DIRECTOR, ARLINGTON ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT, ARLINGTON COUNTY

Hired in January, Tucker is stepping into one of the state’s most prominent economic development positions. His predecessor, Victor Hoskins, who now heads up Fairfax’s economic development, was a key figure in Amazon deciding to locate its $2.5 billion HQ2 East Coast headquarters in Arlington. As the massive e-tailer gears up to reach its hiring goal of 25,000 workers over the next decade, Tucker will be working to help Arlington integrate HQ2 into the greater community, with a focus on spurring small business growth.

That was his specialty in Danville, where, as economic development director, he helped usher in 1,645 jobs and generate $448 million in capital investment. Among his successes, Morgan Olson LLC, North America’s largest manufacturer of walk-in delivery vans, announced last year it would be locating in the former Ikea plant outside Danville, adding 703 jobs.

A James Madison University graduate and Lynchburg native, Tucker also is a seasoned concert pianist who has performed worldwide, including at the Kennedy Center for then-President Bill Clinton. Last year, for Washington D.C.’s Black Theatre & Arts Festival, he was musical director for two stage tributes to Ray Charles, Aretha Franklin, Marvin Gaye and other revered African American legends.

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Agriculture

CHAD BALLARD

PRESIDENT, BALLARD FISH & OYSTER CO. INC., CHERITON

Ballard represents the fifth generation of the 120-year-old-plus Cheriton-based Ballard Fish & Oyster Co. Before dedicating his time to the family business, Ballard worked in investment banking with BB&T Capital Markets.

Ballard Fish & Oyster Co. is the parent company of Cherrystone Aqua-Farms and Chincoteague Shellfish Farms, which produce Watch House Point, Chincoteague Cultured Salt, Misty Point, James River and Chunu oysters, as well as clams. (The company was once the largest clam producer in the U.S.)

Ballard serves on the Virginia Shellfish Growers Association board of directors and is the Virginia representative for the East Coast Shellfish Growers Association. He is also a member of the Young Presidents Organization and the Virginia Seafood Council.

Virginia is the third-largest marine product producer in the U.S., according to the Virginia Seafood Council. The state in recent years has also pumped millions of dollars into the industry to produce more shellfish, which act as a natural filter in Chesapeake Bay waters.

Ballard also owns Cherrystone Family Camping Resort in Cape Charles. In April, he was appointed to Gov. Ralph Northam’s COVID-19 Business Task Force, which provides input for reopening during the pandemic.

GEORGE Y. BIRDSONG

CEO AND GENERAL COUNSEL, BIRDSONG CORP., SUFFOLK

This Suffolk native earned his juris doctorate from the University of Virginia and worked as an attorney before joining the family business as secretary treasurer. He became CEO of the 100-year-old-plus company in 1999.

Birdsong Corp. is the largest peanut sheller in the U.S. — with Dun & Bradstreet estimating it had more $62 million in revenue last year. George Birdsong was inducted into the Peanut Hall of Fame in 2015 and in 2016, the General Assembly commended him for his volunteer work and philanthropy.

He is active in Project Peanut Butter, which donates ready-to-use therapeutic food for children who are severely malnourished.

Birdsong also has been involved with a number of organizations, including the Suffolk Redevelopment and Housing Authority, Suffolk Chamber of Commerce, Hampton Roads Business Roundtable and the Virginia Manufacturers Association. At Virginia Wesleyan University, he serves as trustee emeritus and is past chair of the Virginia Foundation for Independent Colleges and the Obici Healthcare Foundation.

He has also served on the boards of the Chesapeake Bay Foundation and Nansemond River Preservation Alliance. Randolph-Macon College has a residence hall named for the Birdsong family.

GEORGE C. FREEMAN III

CHAIRMAN, PRESIDENT AND CEO, UNIVERSAL CORP., RICHMOND

Freeman has been CEO of the world’s largest tobacco leaf supplier since 2008 and president since 2006. He previously served as the company’s general counsel, secretary and vice president. Freeman started his career clerking for U.S. Supreme Court Associate Justice Lewis F. Powell Jr. and Judge Richard S. Arnold of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit.

Universal Corp., which reported $2.2 billion in revenue in 2019, acquired fruit and vegetable ingredient processor FruitSmart this year. In addition to leading Universal, Freeman also serves on the boards of Richmond-based Tredegar Corp. and the Mutual Assurance Society of Virginia.

Freeman also is involved with the American Civil War Museum, the Children’s Hospital Foundation, the Delta Waterfowl Foundation, the TowneBank Foundation, the Virginia chapter of The Nature Conservancy and the Virginia Foundation of Independent Colleges.

FIRST JOB: Driver for Gerald Baliles during his gubernatorial election campaign

FAVORITE APP: Fitbit

NEW LIFE EXPERIENCE RECENTLY: Not traveling overseas 10+ days a month

FAVORITE VACATION DESTINATION(S): Santa Marta, Spain and Kinsale, Virginia

TIM HEYDON

CEO, SHENANDOAH GROWERS INC., HARRISONBURG

Heydon first became involved with Shenandoah Growers Inc. while earning his master’s degree in business administration from James Madison University. During his time with the university’s Small Business Development Center, he was approached by the company, which was seeking help after one of its founders passed away. Heydon hadn’t studied agriculture but threw himself into the company wholeheartedly. He became an equity partner and CEO in 1998 after completing his MBA in entrpreneurship. And in 2015, Heydon was named as Entrepreneur of the Year by the Harrisonburg-Rockingham Chamber of Commerce.

Shenandoah Growers, which produces fresh herbs, started with only 15 employees and $1 million in sales — but today its products are sold in more than 20,000 stores (including Whole Foods Market) and the company employs more than 1,500 workers. The company reported approximately $120 million in revenue last year. Under its That’s Tasty brand, Shenandoah sells organic lettuces, herb and spice purees and fresh herbs. Each year, the company produces more than 30 million certified-organic plants.

In 2017, Shenandoah Growers expanded its system of automated greenhouses and indoor LED growing rooms, opening a third facility in Sherman, Texas, in addition to existing operations in Virginia and Indiana.

ROBERT J. MILLS JR.

OWNER, BRIAR VIEW FARM, CALLANDS

A first-generation farmer, Mills owns Briar View Farm in Callands, where he runs the 2,244-acre operation with his sons, Logan and Holden. At the farm, he raises poultry and beef and grows four different types of organic tobacco, vegetables and winter wheat.

Before the farm, Mills was a conservation specialist for the Pittsylvania Soil and Water Conservation District. During his time there, a Perdue representative approached him to raise pullets, or young hens. Now, Mills raises 34,000 chickens each year, which are shipped to eastern North Carolina to lay eggs that will hatch and become Perdue chickens.

A Virginia Tech graduate, Mills was recognized by the Virginia Cooperative Extension as the 2017 Virginia Farmer of the Year. At his alma mater, he has served on the board of visitors and as president of the Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services’ board of directors (a position established by Tech).

Mills also is a commissioner for the Virginia Tobacco Region Revitalization Commission, a member of the Virginia Farm Bureau Federation board of directors and a past president of the Pittsylvania County Farm Bureau.

WAYNE F. PRYOR

PRESIDENT, VIRGINIA FARM BUREAU FEDERATION, HADENSVILLE

Pryor, a Goochland County hay and grain producer, is serving his seventh term as president of the Virginia Farm Bureau Federation. The federation serves more than 35,000 producer member families, making it the largest nonprofit agricultural membership organization in Virginia.

Pryor is president, CEO and board chairman for the Virginia Farm Bureau Mutual Insurance Co., the Virginia Farm Bureau Federation AgPAC and the Virginia Foundation for Agriculture, Innovation and Rural Sustainability. He’s also president of the Virginia Foundation for Agriculture in the Classroom.

Pryor is a member of the Virginia Agribusiness Council, the Virginia Cattlemen’s Association and the Virginia Cooperative Extension Leadership Council. He was previously a member of Virginia Tech’s College of Agriculture and Life Sciences Advisory Committee and a trustee of the nonprofit Center for Rural Virginia.

Nationally, Pryor serves on the American Farm Bureau Federation board and has served in executive leadership for Jackson, Mississippi-based Southern Farm Bureau Life Insurance Co.; Syracuse, New York-based Countryway Mutual Insurance Co.; Chicago-based American Agriculture Insurance Co. and American Farm Bureau Insurance Services Inc.

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Real Estate

J. SCOTT ADAMS

PRESIDENT, VIRGINIA, COLLIERS INTERNATIONAL LLC, NORFOLK

A nearly 30-year veteran in the real estate industry, Adams, who joined Colliers in January 2019, oversees the company’s Central and Southeast Virginia teams and, starting this fall, the Raleigh market.
Last year, Colliers Virginia, which employs more than 350 people, reported $54.5 million in revenue.

Adams began his career at CBRE in 1993, where he oversaw its offices in Central and Southeast Virginia and North Carolina. He also was a senior consultant in Kenneth Leventhal & Co.’s Washington, D.C., office.

A graduate of the University of Virginia and its Darden School of Business, Adams founded a commercial real estate initiative at Darden and is involved in military veterans’ causes. He is chairman of The Honor Foundation’s board and helped launch the military special operations organization’s campus in Virginia Beach in 2014. Adams also is a member of the executive advisory council for Old Dominion University’s Strome College of Business. During his career as an investment sales broker, he has closed more than $1.5 billion in commercial property sales.

ERIC E. APPERSON

PRESIDENT OF CONSTRUCTION, ARMADA HOFFLER PROPERTIES INC., VIRGINIA BEACH

Apperson started his construction career at Armada Hoffler in 1987 and held multiple positions before becoming president of Goodman Segar Hogan Hoffler Construction, a company subsidiary, 10 years later. In 2000, he was named president of construction at the Virginia Beach firm. In his role as president, he oversees the company’s management, strategic growth and finances.

One of Armada Hoffler’s largest projects in the last five years was a $100 million contract to build the Hyatt Place Virginia Beach Town Center and the Hyatt House Virginia Beach/Oceanfront hotels. Armada Hoffler, however, may be best known on the East Coast for its extensive construction in Baltimore’s upscale Harbor East area, where it has performed a total of $1.5 billion of work.

Apperson earned his bachelor’s degree from Hampden-Sydney College, where he serves as a member of the board of trustees. He has also been a member of the board of directors of Bank @lantec (now Dollar Bank) since 2007 and became chairman in 2010. He now sits on Dollar Bank’s Virginia advisory board. Apperson also served as a board of trustees member at Cape Henry Collegiate in Virginia Beach.

BRENDAN BECHTEL

CHAIRMAN AND CEO, BECHTEL GROUP INC., RESTON

The fifth generation of his family to lead Bechtel since its founding in 1898, Brendan Bechtel was named CEO in 2016 and elected chairman in 2017, at age 36, after serving as president and chief operating officer from 2014 to 2016.

The nation’s largest construction company, Bechtel has operations in 160 countries and on all seven continents, and focuses on infrastructure, energy (including nuclear, oil and gas) and mining. The company earned $25.5 billion in revenue in 2018.

Bechtel graduated from Middlebury College and has two master’s degrees from Stanford University. He also leads the infrastructure committee of the Business Roundtable and serves on the boards of the National Geographic Society and the Center for Strategic and International Studies.

Bechtel has spoken in favor of nuclear energy replacing fossil fuels and also advocates for public private partnerships to address weaknesses in the United States’ infrastructure. In April 2020, Bechtel was named to the president’s team of advisers for the post-pandemic recovery of the construction industry.

JEFF BOEHM

HOWARD SHOCKEY & SONS INC., PRESIDENT, WINCHESTER

Boehm joined Howard Shockey & Sons Inc.’s sister company, the Shockey Precast Group, in 1987 and was named its director of business development
12 years later. In 2002, he joined Howard Shockey & Sons as its director of business development and was quickly promoted to vice president. As president, he oversees the company’s strategic growth.

Some of the company’s recent large projects include the $11.3 million T. Tyler Potterfield Memorial Bridge construction in Richmond and the $17.5 million expansion of Valley Health Shenandoah Memorial Hospital in Woodstock. In 2019, the company reported $256 million in revenue.

Boehm currently serves on the board of trustees at the Winchester Medical Center Foundation. He also previously was a board member of Associated Builders and Contractors (ABC) for Virginia and West Virginia and was chairman of the ABC General Contractors Council.

BEST ADVICE: Surround yourself with those who are smarter than you, then keep pushing forward. Ever forward.

FIRST JOB: Working the counter at an Arby’s in Pittsburgh

WHAT I’VE LEARNED: Ferris Bueller was right: “Life comes at you fast.”

BRIAN BORTELL

PRESIDENT, CHAIRMAN AND CEO, TIMMONS GROUP, RICHMOND

Bortell has worked for Timmons Group for more than three decades, including 16 years as president and CEO. Under his leadership, Timmons has been named one of the Inc. 5000 fastest-growing, privately held firms in the nation for five years running, with $86.4 million in revenue in 2018. A Norfolk native, Bortell is a certified engineer. A former director of the Midlothian Rotary Club, he is a graduate of the Leadership Metro Richmond program, and he and his wife regularly foster dogs from the Richmond Animal League.

EDUCATION: Virginia Tech (B.S.), Averett University (MBA)

HOBBY/PASSION: Triathlons. Bortell is a seven-time Ironman World Championship qualifier and has raced in the Hawaiian Ironman several times.

BEVERAGE OF CHOICE: Very hoppy IPA beers

MOST RECENT BOOK READ: “Something Needs to Change: A Call to Make Your Life Count in a World of Urgent Need,” by David Platt

RAMON W. BREEDEN JR.

PRESIDENT, FOUNDER AND CEO, THE BREEDEN CO. INC., RICHMOND

Breeden founded the multifamily, commercial and single-family construction company in 1967 after working in real estate sales and mortgage financing. As one of the largest construction companies in Virginia, The Breeden Co. develops apartment complexes, homes and commercial properties.

Breeden is also the founder and a former board member of Virginia Beach-based Commerce Bank, which was purchased by BB&T (now Truist Financial Corp.) in 1996.

At his alma mater, the McIntire School of Commerce at The University of Virginia, he serves as president of the advisory board. Breeden was president of the Tidewater Builders Association and is a board member for the Hampton Roads Military, Federal Facilities Alliance and Virginia Beach Education Foundation.

HOBBY/PASSION: Hobby: Flying my helicopter and jet plane. Passion: Being the best in business.

FAVORITE VACATION DESTINATION(S): Palm Beach, Florida, and my home and farm located in Mathews County

BEVERAGE OF CHOICE: Diet Coke

FAVORITE SONG: “All I Ask of You,” by Andrew Lloyd Webber from “The Phantom of the Opera”

BOB CLARK

PRESIDENT, BASKERVILL, RICHMOND

Clark became president of the Richmond-based firm behind the engineering and design of Virginia hotels, university buildings and commercial spaces in 2004 after five years serving as Baskervill’s chief operating officer. The mechanical engineer earned his bachelor’s degree from Virginia Military Institute and served as an engineering officer for the U.S. Air Force for five years following graduation.

Clark joined the firm in 1995 and quickly worked his way up the ranks. Although they were designed before Clark’s time at the firm, Baskervill is known for engineering and designing Richmond staples such as the Medical College of Virginia’s West Hospital, The Poe Museum and the Richmond Public Library Main Branch. Recently, Baskervill has undertaken major jobs for Bon Secours, Hilton, Virginia Commonwealth University and James Madison University, as well as several large commercial office space projects.

This year, Clark took over as chairman of the Virginia Council of CEOs, a professional organization for executive leaders across the commonwealth.

WHAT’S ONE THING YOU WOULD CHANGE ABOUT VIRGINIA? The city-county separation of government

TIMOTHY J.‘TIM’ CLARK

PRESIDENT, BLAIR CONSTRUCTION INC., GRETNA

After spending 14 years as a facilities engineer, Clark joined Blair Construction in 1999, eventually becoming the company’s president. Today, he oversees new business development, client relationships, contract negotiations, personnel, scheduling and bonding. Clark has deep roots in the construction industry, coming from a family of two generations of commercial and residential carpenters and supervisors.

Some of Blair Construction’s largest projects in the past few years include the $15.5 million Institute for Advanced Learning and Research in Danville and the $9.9 million ICF International call center in Martinsville.

Outside of work, Clark has served as a board member of the Virginia Chamber of Commerce, the Virginia 4-H Foundation and the Virginia Technical Institute. He also is an advisory board member for American National Bank and Trust and the Olde Dominion Agricultural Foundation. Clark previously served as chair of the West Piedmont Workforce Board and the Danville Pittsylvania County Chamber of Commerce.

HOBBY/PASSION: Raising and showing black Angus cows

FAVORITE APP: Words with Friends

MOST RECENT BOOK READ: The Bible

C. DANIEL CLEMENTE

FOUNDER, CHAIRMAN AND CEO, CLEMENTE DEVELOPMENT CO. INC., TYSONS

A key figure in the development of Tysons into an urban edge city, Clemente founded his commercial development giant in 1986 after careers in banking and law. His firm is currently working on what will be the tallest building in Virginia and the Washington, D.C., region — The Iconic tower, part of Clemente’s mixed-use The View at Tysons project.

Clemente was appointed by Gov. L. Douglas Wilder to chair the Virginia Economic Recovery Commission’s Committee on Capital Formation and by Gov. Mark Warner to the Governor’s Advisory Council on Revenue Estimates.

Clemente serves on the Virginia Economic Development Partnership board of directors and is a former chair, who established VEDP’s Rural Virginia Action Committee. He also founded and chaired Community Bank and Trust Co.; was chairman of Virginia National Bank/Fairfax; founded First Commercial Bank; and was president and general counsel for subsidiaries of Virginia National Bank.

Clemente was previously George Mason University’s rector and chaired its board of visitors. And as director of the Friends of Clemyjontri (an accessible park in Fairfax), the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors gave him the honorary title of Lord Fairfax.

RYAN T. CONRAD

CEO, NORTHERN VIRGINIA ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS, FAIRFAX

Conrad was named CEO of NVAR in 2015, after leading the Greater Lehigh Valley Realtors in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, and serving as its government affairs director. He’s also an avid competitive athlete, having completed an obstacle course race at the Blue Mountain Ski Area. NVAR is one of the country’s largest Realtor associations, with more than 12,000 members, and is an educational and lobbying organization. NVAR also publishes economic reports in partnership with the George Mason University Center for Regional Analysis.

Conrad served in elected office as a member of the Lower Macungie Township (Pennsylvania) Board of Commissioners for six years. He grew up in Westchester County, New York, and his mother was a lieutenant in the New York City Police Department. He is a graduate of SUNY’s University at Albany and the East Stroudsburg University of Pennsylvania, holding bachelor’s and master’s degrees in political science.

JEFFREY S. ‘JEFF’ DETWILER

PRESIDENT AND CEO, THE LONG & FOSTER COS., CHANTILLY

As head of Virginia’s largest residential real estate company since 2009, Detwiler leads 1,800 employees and 11,000 real estate agents in seven states and the District of Columbia. The company completes more than 74,000 annual transactions, with nearly $30 billion in annual sales.

For decades a family-owned business, Long & Foster was sold to one of Berkshire Hathaway’s affiliates, HomeServices of America Inc., in 2017 but still operates as an independent company. Detwiler oversaw a period of major expansion before the sale, growing Long & Foster’s operations into Delaware, Pennsylvania and Charlottesville.

He served on several boards, including George Mason University Foundation’s board of trustees and real estate committee and the Greater Washington Board of Trade. His background is in financial services, including mortgage banking, fixed income trading and traditional banking, and before joining Long & Foster, he was with Bank of America, Countrywide Home Loans and Credit Suisse First Boston.

A Princeton University alumnus with a bachelor’s degree in psychology, Detwiler was ranked No. 30
on the Real Estate Almanac’s 2020 Power 200 list of the nation’s most powerful residential real estate industry leaders.

GERALD S. DIVARIS

CHAIRMAN AND CEO, DIVARIS GROUP, VIRGINIA BEACH

Divaris is a South African native who co-founded his commercial real estate company with his cousin, Michael Divaris, the firm’s president and chief operating officer, in 1982.

Gerald Divaris has overseen dozens of projects in and around Virginia Beach, his adopted hometown. The company’s tenants include Kohl’s, Lowe’s, Staples, Gap, Old Navy and Best Buy.

One of the founders of the Central Business District Association in Virginia Beach, he is responsible for developing the Town Center of Virginia Beach, a bustling mixed-use project with offices, retail, hotels and restaurants.

He now oversees Divaris Real Estate Inc. and Divaris Property Management Corp., with a portfolio of 31 million square feet of retail and office space and 170 employees.

Divaris also chairs Realty Resources, a national network of retail brokers, and serves on the Central Business District Association’s executive committee and TowneBank’s Virginia Beach location’s board of directors. He graduated from the University of Cape Town with a master’s degree in business science.

DANIEL FAUST

EXECUTIVE VICE PRESIDENT, SOUTHEAST REGION, AECOM, ARLINGTON

Based in Arlington, Faust is the top Virginia executive of AECOM and since 2016 he has led the company’s design and consulting services business for the company’s Southeast region. With more than 4,000 employees and an annual revenue of $950 million, the region includes Virginia, Maryland, West Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina and other states, as well as Latin America.

Faust has worked for AECOM since 2005, overseeing its transportation market and the highways and bridges sector, among other duties. An international infrastructure design company that earned $20.2 billion in revenue in 2019, AECOM employs about 87,000 people and is based in Los Angeles.

The firm’s major current projects in Virginia are construction of the $320 million Potomac Yard Metrorail station and the 11-mile extension of the rail line toward Washington Dulles International Airport, a $1.6 billion project.

Before joining AECOM, Faust was chief engineer of the Delaware River Port Authority, and he holds degrees in civil engineering from Drexel University and the University of Delaware.

JULIAN G. FRANCIS

PRESIDENT AND CEO, BEACON ROOFING SUPPLY INC., HERNDON

Francis took the helm of the Herndon-based residential and commercial roofing materials distributor in September 2019. The company, which employs more than 8,000, reported $7.1 billion in sales last year and is ranked No. 434 on the Fortune 500 list. Beacon Roofing Supply operates in all 50 U.S. states and has more than 500 branches. In 2018, the company closed its acquisition of Allied Building Products for $2.6 billion.

Before his time with Beacon Roofing Supply Inc., Francis served in leadership positions at residential product and information services companies (including Owens Corning, Reed Business Information and USG Corp.) that each reported more than $2 billion in revenues. He was president of the insulation business at Owens Corning before taking his position at Beacon.

Francis earned his bachelor’s degree in mathematics and his doctorate in materials engineering at Swansea University in the United Kingdom. He also earned his MBA from DePaul University.

BARBARA J. FRIED

OWNER, FRIED COS. INC., CROZET

In 1962, Barbara Fried and her late husband, Mark Fried, founded the Springfield-based Fried and Fried law firm, specializing in real estate law. About 20 years later, the couple started a real estate development business in Albemarle County that continues to be family-owned and operated, with $100 million in construction business each year.

Among their projects are residential developments in Greene and Spotsylvania counties, as well as retail centers and offices in Northern Virginia. Known for their philanthropy and humanitarianism, the couple in 1971 founded Innisfree Village, a residential community in Albemarle County for adults with intellectual disabilities. The Frieds also established Charlottesville-Albemarle Riding Therapy (CART), a horseback-riding program for disabled adults and children.

In 2019, Germanna Community College opened the Barbara J. Fried Center, where the college has established a presence in Stafford County. The Fried family gave a $1 million gift to Germanna in 2015, and the center is the first building at Germanna named for a woman.

Fried herself attended the University of Chicago at age 16 and was one of five women in her class at Chicago’s law school in the 1950s.

FRANK ‘BUDDY’ GADAMS

FOUNDER AND PRESIDENT, MARATHON DEVELOPMENT GROUP INC., NORFOLK

Shortly after graduating from James Madison University with a bachelor’s degree in finance, Gadams founded Marathon Development Group, which has changed the literal landscape of Norfolk over the past couple of decades.

Marathon Development Group is responsible for the transformation of downtown Norfolk’s Bank of America building into a massive residential development called Icon Norfolk. Marathon also developed The Rockefeller Norfolk Apartments from the former Union Mission building. In 2017, Gadams sold the downtown ADP building (home to a large payroll services company) for $57 million, which, at the time, was the highest price fetched for a Norfolk office building. In October 2019, he announced his latest downtown 500-apartment development, which will be located in the city’s historic Neon District.

Gadams also directed construction for the Suffolk Center for Cultural Arts and renovation of the Governor’s School for the Arts in Norfolk. He has been a major donor to the Children’s Hospital of The King’s Daughters in Norfolk, having invested in the hospital’s biotech startup ReAlta Life Sciences and hosted a fundraiser for the hospital in 2018.

MATTHEW GANNON

MANAGING DIRECTOR AND MARKET LEADER, VIRGINIA, COLLIERS INTERNATIONAL LLC, WASHINGTON, D.C.

Gannon leads Colliers’ offices in the Washington, D.C., region, including Northern Virginia, with more than 50 real estate agents. Before joining Colliers in 2019, he worked in Paramount Group Inc.’s D.C. commercial office division and at Vornado Realty Trust, where he was vice president of leasing. Gannon serves on the Commercial Real Estate Brokers Association board of directors, and he’s been named the Greater Washington Commercial Association of Realtors’ top developer/landlord agent three times. A graduate of Fordham University, Gannon hails from New Jersey.

An international real estate and investment management company, Colliers has a presence in 68 countries and employs 14,500 people. In 2019, the company brought in $3 billion in corporate revenue and managed $33 billion in assets. Like most companies, Colliers saw a downturn in profits in the spring due to the economic impact of the coronavirus pandemic, with revenues down by 15% to 25%, according to its June investors report.

BILL GOGGINS

VICE PRESIDENT AND CEO, VIRGINIA DIVISION, CLANCY & THEYS CONSTRUCTION CO., NEWPORT NEWS

Goggins has been with Raleigh, North Carolina-based Clancy & Theys for more than 25 years, overseeing some of the firm’s largest Virginia projects. Founded more than 70 years ago, the construction company was primarily focused on the Raleigh market but added four offices in Wilmington and Charlotte, North Carolina; Orlando, Florida; and Newport News, further expanding its construction footprint. The Newport News location now employs approximately 100 people. In 2019, the company reported more than $581.6 million in revenue.

In Hampton Roads, the construction firm run by Goggins has constructed some of the most recognizable buildings in the region, including Dollar Tree’s Chesapeake headquarters, Norfolk’s Wells Fargo Center, the Sandler Center for the Performing Arts in Virginia Beach and Canon’s Advanced Cartridge Manufacturing building in Newport News. The company was also the general contractor for the Norfolk International Airport renovations in 2014.

Outside of the office, Goggins is involved in the region as a member of the Hampton Roads Chamber of Commerce.

LOUIS S.‘LOU’ HADDAD

PRESIDENT AND CEO, ARMADA HOFFLER PROPERTIES INC., VIRGINIA BEACH

Haddad joined Armada Hoffler in 1985 as an on-site construction superintendent, quickly rising to become president of its construction company in 1987. By 1996, he was at the helm of Armada Hoffler’s parent company. Today, it is among Virginia’s largest commercial real estate companies and is known for Virginia Beach’s Town Center, as well as more than two dozen public-private development deals and $800 million in new projects since going public in 2013.

Haddad and his wife, Mary, co-founded a foundation in 1999 to help at-risk children, and he has volunteered with Big Brothers/Big Sisters, the Special Olympics, United Way and other charities.

Last year, amid some community criticism and citing not enough support from Portsmouth city government, Armada Hoffler withdrew its plans to redevelop Portsmouth’s waterfront by moving city-owned buildings inland to make room for private development on the coast. In June 2020, the company salvaged a deal to sell seven grocery-anchored shopping centers to a Canadian company for $90 million after an initial $106.5 million agreement was canceled due to the coronavirus pandemic’s economic impact.

CARL HARDEE

PRESIDENT AND CEO, THE LAWSON COS., VIRGINIA BEACH

A 29-year veteran of The Lawson Cos., Hardee previously served as vice president, chief operating officer and president of the firm’s property management company before taking the helm in 2016, succeeding Steven Lawson, the company’s chairman of the board. Hardee also is a U.S. Army veteran of the Gulf War and a graduate of Virginia Military Institute.

Founded in 1972, Lawson owns and manages about 5,500 apartments in Virginia and South Carolina, and Hardee is responsible for the firm’s multifamily and commercial business divisions, as well as serving as Lawson’s executive certified property manager.

In 2019, the company’s Seaside Harbor Apartments in Virginia Beach’s ViBe Creative District won an award from the National Association of Home Builders for best affordable apartment community. A $16.5 million project completed in 2018, the complex was built in partnership with the nonprofit Samaritan House to accommodate residents with developmental disabilities.

DORCAS T. HELFANT-BROWNING

MANAGING PARTNER AND PRINCIPAL BROKER, COLDWELL BANKER PROFESSIONAL REALTORS,
VIRGINIA BEACH

In addition to her job as a real estate agent in the Hampton Roads region, Helfant-Browning was the first woman to lead the National Association of Realtors in 1992, having earlier led the Virginia Association of Realtors and the Tidewater Board of Realtors. During her tenure as NAR president, Helfant-Browning was instrumental in persuading President George H.W. Bush’s administration to support tax cuts to stimulate the national economy, which had recently slowed. She also has served as a trustee of the Realtors Political Action Committee and in 1993 was named a member of Fannie Mae’s advisory council. Having started her career in 1967, Helfant-Browning became the owner of her own firm in 1974, which affiliated with Coldwell Banker in 1989. She currently serves on the board of directors of Virginia FREE, a nonpartisan political organization geared toward the business community, and is a former member of the State Board for Community Colleges.

BRETT HITT

CO-CHAIRMAN, HITT CONTRACTING INC., FALLS CHURCH

In 1984, Brett Hitt joined the family-owned company started almost 50 years earlier by his grandfather and grandmother around their dining room table. Starting out as an assistant project manager, he was named as co-president in 2005. Twelve years later, he became co-chairman of the board. Hitt focuses on firm strategy and oversees the principal leadership team. He streamlined the company’s construction delivery process by transitioning the company to web-based project management and building information modeling.

Hitt Contracting, which is behind the construction of several Northern Virginia data centers, hit more than $771 million in 2018 revenue, with Washington Business Journal ranking it as the No. 1 interior construction firm in the greater Washington, D.C., area in 2019. Hitt’s clients have included American University, ExxonMobile Corp., GEICO and United Airlines.

In his philanthropic life, Hitt supports organizations including Habitat for Humanity, Ronald McDonald House, Juvenile Diabetes Foundation and Wounded Warriors Project.

MARK HOURIGAN

FOUNDER AND CEO, HOURIGAN GROUP, RICHMOND

Nearly 30 years ago, Hourigan founded his Richmond-based construction and development firm. It reported $400 million in 2019 revenue (placing the firm No. 3 on construction trade magazine Engineering News-Record’s list of Top Mid-Atlantic Contractors). The firm acquired Capstone Contracting Co. in 2019.

Some of its projects include the new Dominion Energy headquarters, the Commonwealth University STEM building, the University of Richmond’s Robins Stadium and the Altria Center for Research and Technology.

Hourigan serves as board chair of Virginia Tech’s Myers-Lawson School of Construction and as an advisory board chair to the College of Architecture and Urban Studies. In his roles at Tech, he serves as a guest lecturer, develops curriculum and sponsors internships. He has also served as a board member of Lansing Building Products, the Chesapeake Bay Foundation and Virginia Business Bank.

He serves on several community boards, including ChamberRVA and the Community Foundation for a greater Richmond. Hourigan also sits on the GO Virginia Region 4 Council, which recommends state economic development grant investments for projects in the greater Richmond region.

STEVE JOHNSON

FOUNDER AND PRESIDENT, JOHNSON COMMERCIAL DEVELOPMENT, BRISTOL

After a knee injury ended his National Football League career playing for the New England Patriots and the Dallas Cowboys, Johnson founded the Bristol-based commercial development company in 1995. As president, he oversees all developments, sales, marketing and operations.

The largest project Johnson has been responsible for is The Pinnacle, a $150 million, 240-acre shopping center located directly off Interstate 81 in Bristol, Tennessee. The development opened in 2014, and Johnson Commercial Development has plans to expand the development, adding a 300-acre sports and entertainment complex on the Bristol, Virginia, side.

In 2004, Johnson donated a building for the construction of the Birthplace of Country Music Museum in Bristol, Virginia, and he is a donor for the United Way of Bristol. He also serves as honorary co-chair of the Niswonger Children’s Hospital Foundation in Johnson City, Tennessee.

A Virginia Tech alum, Johnson has continued to be involved with the Hokies and is a member of the university’s Ut Prosim Society, which recognizes major benfactors. In 2013, Tech renamed its football practice fields in honor of Johnson, who was the Hokies’ sixth-ranked all-time tight end with two All-American honorable mentions.

ROBERT C.‘BOB’ KETTLER

FOUNDER AND CEO, KETTLER INC., MCLEAN

After spending a few years renovating apartments and retail stores in Washington, D.C., Kettler in 1977 founded his eponymous company, which began as a home builder. And in 1988, Kettler Inc. added its property management wing, which now oversees more than 30,000 apartments.

Since its inception, the company has developed 46,000 home lots for builders, 15 shopping centers, 10 million square feet of commercial space and eight championship golf courses — making it one of the largest multifamily developers in the country. The company employs approximately 1,000 people.

One of Kettler’s larger, more recent projects was the transformation of the former SAIC campus, which now includes 1.7 million square feet of mixed-use development in Tysons. One might also recognize Kettler as the former sponsor of the Capitals Iceplex in Arlington, the training center for the Washington Capitals ice hockey team.

Kettler has served on the boards for the Trust for the National Mall, the Tysons Partnership, The Kennedy Center and the Wesley Theological Seminary. He and his wife, Charlotte, served as co-chairs of a $50 million capital campaign that led to the redevelopment of the Potomac School in McLean.

ROBERT M. ‘BOB’ KING

PRESIDENT, RETAIL SALES AND LEASING, HARVEY LINDSAY COMMERCIAL REAL ESTATE, VIRGINIA BEACH

King began his career with Harvey Lindsay in 1978, leasing shopping centers in the Hampton Roads region; since 1985, he has led the retail leasing team, which oversees the company’s 4.5 million square feet of retail space. He holds degrees from Duke and Old Dominion universities, and his clients have included Eastern Virginia Medical School, Food Lion, Walmart and Kroger.

He became president of the firm in December 2019, taking over from his brother, Billy King, who left to pursue private investment opportunities. The King brothers were adopted by Harvey Lindsay Jr. after he married their mother, Frances; their father, a Navy pilot, died while taking off from an aircraft carrier.

Harvey Lindsay Sr. founded the company in 1919, and after his son took over in 1954, it shifted from residential real estate to sales, leasing and development of commercial real estate.

Last year, the company represented the seller of Williamsburg-based shopping center Courthouse Commons, which was purchased for $12.2 million by a Baltimore limited partnership.

LAURA DILLARD LAFAYETTE

CEO, RICHMOND ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS, RICHMOND

Lafayette oversees the 6,000-member Richmond Association of Realtors and the Central Virginia Regional Multiple Listing Service. A William & Mary graduate who attended Yale Divinity School and the University of Virginia, Lafayette took a detour and became then-gubernatorial candidate
L. Douglas Wilder’s press secretary, continuing the role after he took office in 1990. The two met when she was an intern and he was lieutenant governor and she became a speechwriter for him.

Along with her duties at RAR, Lafayette served on the Virginia Housing Commission until her term ended June 30, and she also oversaw a Richmond-area affordable housing task force. Currently, she chairs the board of Maggie L. Walker Community Land Trust, and serves on the boards of several nonprofit groups focused on housing accessibility for low-income people.

In 2009, she was promoted to CEO of RAR after serving as its government affairs and communications director, among other roles, since 1993. A Richmond native, Lafayette enjoys coaching boys’ basketball in her spare time.

JOHN R. LAWSON II

EXECUTIVE CHAIRMAN, W.M. JORDAN CO., NEWPORT NEWS

In 2018, Lawson stepped down from his position as president and CEO after 32 years leading the Newport News-based construction company his father founded in 1958. During his tenure, the company grew from $25 million to more than $500 million in revenue.

W.M. Jordan focuses mostly on local construction projects, including the recent Ferguson campus at Newport News City Center, Liebherr USA’s expansion in Newport News and the Measurement Systems Lab at NASA Langley Research Center.

A Virginia Tech alum, Lawson in 2017 received the university’s highest honor, the William H. Ruffner Medal. He is one of the namesakes of the university’s Myers-Lawson School of Construction. He also serves as chairman of the board at ivWatch LLC and is a board member for TowneBank.

HOBBY/PASSION: Boating, reading, golf, history and art

WHAT’S ONE THING YOU WOULD CHANGE ABOUT VIRGINIA? Dillon Rule

FAVORITE SONG: “God Only Knows,” by The Beach Boys

FIRST JOB: Selling popcorn and peanuts at a Minor League Baseball park when I was 13

MILES LEON

PRESIDENT, CHAIRMAN AND PARTNER, S.L. NUSBAUM REALTY CO., NORFOLK

Leon has been with Nusbaum, which has long been a significant player in Hampton Roads’ commercial real estate market, for more than three decades. He oversaw the revamp of Norfolk’s St. Paul Apartments and the building of Norfolk Premium Outlets. In May, the company brokered the sale of a former hotel property in Norfolk to the city’s Economic Development Authority for $2.4 million.

Leon serves on several organizations’ boards, including the Children’s Hospital of the King’s Daughters Health System, the Hampton Roads Community Foundation, Downtown Norfolk Council, Old Dominion University’s Real Estate Foundation and the United Jewish Federation of Tidewater, of which he is a former president and annual campaign chairman. He also has served as president of the Commercial Real Estate Council and has received awards for service and excellence in commercial real estate. Leon is a graduate of the University of Georgia and the University of Miami, where he earned his MBA.

MATT MALONE

CEO AND OWNER, GROUNDWORKS COS., VIRGINIA BEACH

Malone founded the Virginia Beach-based repair brands holding company Groundworks Cos. after nearly two decades spent working with both finance and environmental servicing companies. Groundworks Cos. currently has 15 brands, encompassing products used for waterproofing, foundation repair and basement repair.

Last year, Groundworks Cos. reported more than $174 million in revenue and since May 2019 has acquired six companies — with a goal to be the leading foundation services company in the U.S. With more than a dozen acquisitions under its belt, Groundworks Cos. is one of the 10 fastest-growing private businesses in Hampton Roads. It ranked No. 1,598 on the 2020 Inc. 5000 list, with 270% growth.

With his background knowledge in investments from his time at Hunt Investment Corp., Malone in 2009 founded Succession Capital Partners. As founder and managing partner, his goal is to provide investment capital services in Southeast Virginia. Some of its acquisitions include Petro Chem Recovery, Shipyard Staffing and A-1 Sewer & Drain — all Hampton Roads businesses. After the transactions, Malone served as owner and chairman of Petro Chem Recovery and Shipyard Staffing for more than five years.

BOB MILKOVICH

CEO, RAND CONSTRUCTION CORP., ALEXANDRIA

After leading Bethesda, Maryland-based real estate investment firm First Potomac Realty Trust, Milkovich joined Rand Construction Corp. in January 2019. During his time at First Potomac, he was responsible for the company’s $1.4 billion sale to Government Properties Income Trust in 2017. Founded in 1989, Rand specializes in building renovations, tenant interiors, base building and commercial design-build construction. Last year, the company reported more than $300 million in sales.

In Virginia, Rand has developed headquarters buildings for organizations such as the March of Dimes, Carfax, the National Automobile Dealers Association and the American Diabetes Association.

Milkovich served on the membership committee for The Economic Club of Washington, D.C., and was president of The Real Estate Group of Washington, D.C.

He earned his bachelor’s degree in business administration from the University of Maryland, where he played varsity football. Milkovich is still involved with his alma mater as director and vice chair of the University System of Maryland Foundation’s investment committee.

JAMES E. ‘JIM’ MILLAR

CO-CHAIRMAN, HITT CONTRACTING INC., FALLS CHURCH

Millar started his four-decade career with Hitt Contracting Inc. in 1981 as a laborer. After serving as an assistant project manager and project manager, he was named co-president in 2005. Twelve years later, he became co-chairman of the board. Millar is also one of the owners of the company, overseeing companywide executive, financial and support operations.

Hitt Contracting, which is behind the construction of several Northern Virginia data centers, hit more than $771 million in interior construction revenue in 2018 revenue, with Washington Business Journal ranking it the No. 1 interior construction firm in the Greater Washington D.C. area in 2019. The company has constructed buildings for Microsoft and Navy Federal Credit Union and also specializes in hotel development.

An avid golfer, Millar’s first job at 13 years old was cleaning golf clubs in the bag room at Washington Golf. In 2014, he earned his company the David Wortman Citizen of the Year Award from the Professional Golfers Association (PGA) of America Middle Atlantic Section for the company’s longtime sponsorship of the Junior Tour. In his volunteer life, Millar has previously served on the board of the Virginia Hospital Center.

CHRIS MOLIVADAS

MARKET DIRECTOR, MID-ATLANTIC REGION, JLL, WASHINGTON, D.C.

Molivadas is the top-ranked Virginia executive at international commercial real estate company JLL, overseeing its properties in the mid-Atlantic region, including Virginia, since 2018. He previously was director of JLL’s investor suite and regional manager for its project and development services business.

Before joining JLL, Molivadas worked for Quadrangle Development and the Clark Construction Group. In his current position, Molivadas is responsible for several major projects
in Virginia, including the VCU Health System’s $350 million children’s hospital under construction in Richmond. The company saw $4.2 billion in transactions in 2019 and has 32.7 million square
feet of leasable space, as well as 9.7 million in managed square feet.

Molivadas has a degree in real estate and urban land economics from Southern Methodist University’s Cox School of Business and has won several sales and revenue awards at Chicago-based JLL, formerly known as Jones Lang LaSalle Inc.

TIMOTHY J. NAUGHTON

CHAIRMAN, CEO AND PRESIDENT, AVALONBAY COMMUNITIES INC., ARLINGTON

Naughton joined AvalonBay in 1989 and has served as president since 2005, becoming CEO seven years later and chairman of its board in 2013. AvalonBay, a publicly traded real estate investment trust, was created through a merger in 1994, and as of March 2020 has nearly 87,000 apartment units across the Washington, D.C., metro area, New York City, Seattle, New England and California.

Naughton, a graduate of the University of Virginia and Harvard Business School, is also a director of Park Hotels & Resorts Inc. and serves on the executive board of the National Association of Real Estate Investment Trusts. A past chairman of the Urban Land Institute’s Multifamily Council, he is a member of the Real Estate Round Table.

AvalonBay owns and manages several high-end apartment complexes in Fairfax, Alexandria and Arlington, including around the Amazon HQ2 campus under development in Arlington.

WILLIAM A. ‘BILL’ PAULETTE

FOUNDER, CHAIRMAN AND CEO, KBS INC., RICHMOND

With a $1,000 investment, Paulette started in 1975 what is now one of the largest construction companies in Virginia. The firm was responsible for the Virginia War Memorial expansion and several apartment complexes and manufacturing buildings in the Richmond region, with about $300 million in revenues.

Paulette graduated from Virginia Military Institute with a bachelor’s degree in civil engineering. At his alma mater, he has been vice president of
the board of visitors and president of the VMI Keydet Club.

In the Richmond community, he has served as a board member of the Virginia State Board for Contractors and Make-A-Wish Greater Virginia. Paulette also was chairman of the Henrico County Community Services Board. He is currently a deacon at River Road Baptist Church.

WHAT WOULD A COMPETITOR SAY ABOUT YOU? “Been around for a long time”

PERSON I ADMIRE: George C. Marshall. He was a smart, honest and selfless man who reconstructed Europe after WWII. In my opinion, he was the greatest American of the 20th century.

BEVERAGE OF CHOICE: Vodka tonic

SOMETHING I WOULD NEVER DO AGAIN: Scuba dive without proper instruction

JON M. PETERSON

CEO AND CHAIRMAN OF THE EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE, THE PETERSON COS., FAIRFAX

Peterson took his top leadership role of the family company in 2018 when his father, Milt Peterson, who founded the company in 1965, became chairman and principal. Two years prior, Jon Peterson was named as chairman of The Peterson Cos.’ executive committee, which oversees all aspects of retail, residential, commercial and mixed-use development and management.

The company, which reported $400 million in 2019 revenues, has been responsible for some of the largest developments in the Washington, D.C., metro area, including Fairfax Corner, Fair Lakes, National Harbor, Virginia Gateway, Downtown Silver Spring, Burke Centre and Tysons McLean Office Park.

In the Northern Virginia community, Peterson has been a member of the George Mason University Board of Visitors and previously served as vice rector. He is involved with many philanthropic and economic development organizations, including Youth for Tomorrow, 2030 Group, Inova Life with Cancer, the Alexandria Chamber of Commerce, the Northern Virginia Transportation Alliance and Prince George’s County Economic Development Board.

MIKE PHILLIPS

PRESIDENT, MID-ATLANTIC OPERATIONS, BALFOUR BEATTY U.S., FAIRFAX

Phillips in 2018 was promoted to lead the London-based construction company Balfour Beatty plc’s U.S. mid-Atlantic operations after 31 years of working with the company. During his career, he has overseen more than 45 construction projects totaling $4 billion and 11 million square feet. Balfour Beatty U.S. last year reported $4.78 billion in revenue —
with $209.92 million of revenue in the Northern Virginia area alone.

Some of the most prominent projects Phillips has been involved with include the $1.4 billion National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency Campus East headquarters at Fort Belvoir and the construction of the National Museum of the Marine Corps, the Air Force Memorial and the Pentagon Memorial. Balfour Beatty U.S. was also responsible for the Dulles Main Terminal rehabilitation project and the construction of the National Science Foundation headquarters in Alexandria.

Phillips is a member of the Associated General Contractors of Virginia Inc., the Society of American Military Engineers and the American Society of Civil Engineers. He earned his bachelor’s degree in civil engineering from Pennsylvania State University.

TIMOTHY J. ‘TIM’ REGAN

PRESIDENT AND CEO, THE WHITING-TURNER CONTRACTING CO., HERNDON

Regan took the helm of the $8.4 billion construction company in 2014 after the death of longtime CEO Willard Hackerman, who had led the company for 60 years. Having been with the company more than three decades before he became president and CEO, Regan had also previously been executive vice president of the company.

With $13.2 billion in 2018 revenue, The Whiting-Turner Contracting Co. is one of the largest contracting companies in the U.S. The Baltimore-based company has offices in Norfolk, Herndon, Richmond and Roanoke. One of Whiting-Turner’s most recent Virginia projects is the $50 million restoration of the Rotunda at the University of Virginia.

A University of Maryland alum, Regan continues a relationship with his alma mater through a Whiting-Turner scholarship program and serves on the board of visitors at the Clark School of Engineering.

STEWART ROBERSON

CHAIRMAN, PRESIDENT AND CEO, MOSELEY ARCHITECTS, RICHMOND

A longtime educator, Roberson joined the Richmond-based architecture firm in 2011 after decades in public education and higher education. The former middle school teacher, principal and director of instruction served as superintendent of schools for Falls Church City Public Schools and Hanover County Public Schools. He also has taught at the University of Virginia Curry School of Education and Human Development, and School of Continuing and Professional Studies (from which he earned his bachelor’s, master’s and doctoral degrees).

As chairman, president and CEO of Moseley Architects, Roberson uses his education background to inform many of the firm’s projects, including designs for Virginia Commonwealth University, James Madison University, Old Dominion University, Virginia Tech and other higher education institutions in Virginia and across the nation. The firm also has completed several projects for public school systems and libraries.

In 2019, the nonprofit Henrico Education Foundation hosted a gala in Roberson’s honor for his work on strengthening public schools. Roberson currently serves as chair of the U.Va. K-12 Advisory Council, which develops relationships and programming between U.Va. and Virginia’s public schools.

COLIN ROBINSON

AREA MANAGER AND RICHMOND BUSINESS UNIT LEADER, GILBANE BUILDING CO., RICHMOND

Robinson became head of the Providence, Rhode Island-based construction company’s Richmond office in June. He is currently leading Gilbane’s renovation of the Virginia General Assembly Building, as well as Altria Group Inc.’s corporate headquarters expansion. Work on the 400,000-square-foot General Assembly Building began in 2016 and is expected to be complete by 2022. Altria’s headquarters will be expanded by 170,000 square feet and undergo renovations.

Gilbane reported $6 billion in revenue in 2018.

Robinson had a hand in some of Richmond’s most prominent redevelopment projects, including the Virginia State Capitol, the Altria Theater and Carpenter Theatre. He got his start in the construction industry while working as a temp on a construction site as a student at James Madison University. He has spent almost all of his 24-year construction career in his hometown of Richmond, where he has worked for Gilbane as a project engineer and project executive.

LOUIS J. ROGERS

FOUNDER AND CEO, CAPITAL SQUARE 1031, GLEN ALLEN

Rogers founded Capital Square in 2012 after working as an attorney specializing in real estate securities and helping start a company that became the country’s largest sponsor of the IRS’ Section 1031 programs, which allow investors to receive tax breaks by purchasing replacement properties after selling property.

Before starting Capital Square, Rogers was a partner at Hirschler, one of Virginia’s largest law firms, for 17 years, founding and leading the firm’s real estate securities practice group. Rogers also was outside legal counsel and later a board member of Triple Net Properties LLC, which became the country’s largest sponsor of securitized Section 1031 programs, with a portfolio of $4 billion.

Capital Square, which has completed $2 billion in transactions, works with investors seeking property to qualify for the IRS’ Section 1031 exchange programs, and he leads the firm’s Delaware statutory trust programs. The company ranked No. 1,838 on the 2020 Inc. 5000 list, with 231% growth.

Rogers was chair of the Investment Program Association’s Section 1031 Exchange Committee and is a member of the Board of Governors of the Virginia State Bar’s Real Property section. He holds degrees from Northeastern University, Oxford University and the University of Virginia School of Law.

PAUL C. SAVILLE

PRESIDENT AND CEO, NVR INC., RESTON

In 2005, Saville became president and CEO of what is now America’s fourth-largest home builder, having constructed more than 430,000 homes. The Reston-based, publicly traded NVR constructs single-family homes, town homes and condos through its three brands: Ryan Homes, NV Homes and Heartland Homes. NVR in 2019 reported more than $7.3 billion in revenues.

In 2018, Saville was Virginia’s top-earning CEO, bringing home more than $39 million. And this year, he ranked No. 15 on USA Today’s list of the highest-paid CEOs in the country. He earned 617 times more than his average employee, according to USA Today. Saville joined the company in 1993 and previously served as executive vice president, chief financial officer and treasurer of the home-building giant.

Following in the footsteps of NVR’s founder and former CEO, Dwight Schar, Saville has been a major donor and supporter of Inova Health System. Following Schar’s $50 million gift to the regional health system (which established the Inova Schar Cancer Institute) in 2015, Saville chaired a $26 million fundraiser for Inova in 2018.

KYLE M. SCHOPPMANN

PRESIDENT, MID-ATLANTIC DIVISION, CBRE GROUP INC., WASHINGTON, D.C.

Schoppmann oversees CBRE’s offices in Virginia, Maryland and Washington, D.C., having joined the company in 2007 as managing director of brokerage services. She serves as a member of CBRE’s Executive Diversity & Inclusion Council and has been honored as one of the Washington metro region’s most powerful women in business. Schoppmann was part of Leadership Greater Washington’s class of 2019, and she served as a David Rockefeller fellow in 2009-2010 for the Partnership for New York City. Recently, she served on the steering committee for CBRE’s COVID-19 relief fund, an international fundraising campaign for organizations including the Capital Area Foodbank and Samaritan House.

EDUCATION: Duke University (B.S.), University of Michigan’s Stephen M. Ross School of Business (MBA)

FIRST JOB: Selling beach supplies at my uncle’s store in Ocean City, New Jersey

PERSON I ADMIRE: Growing up, Amelia Earhart was my hero. She was an adventurer, pioneer and trailblazer who helped pave the way for the women who followed her.

FAVORITE SPORTS TEAM: Washington Capitals, of course.

DONALD E. STONE JR.

CEO, The DEWBERRY COS. INC., FAIRFAX

With more than 35 years of experience in architecture and engineering, Stone oversees a 2,200-person, $380 million family-owned design and construction firm with more than 50 offices across the nation.

Stone started his career at civil engineering firm O’Brien & Gere, where he worked for 25 years, rising to president of the company’s total water solutions division. He joined Dewberry as chief operating officer in 2008 and became CEO in 2010. He has overseen six acquisitions, adding 350 employees and expanding the firm’s operations in the Southeast and California.

In 2018 and 2019, Dewberry released plans to help combat sea level rise in Hampton Roads, including a $3 billion proposal to construct flood walls along the Bayfront Beaches and floodgates at Lynnhaven Inlet. In June, Dewberry joined one of four teams of companies bidding on the massive Interstate 270 and American Legion Bridge project.

A 1980 graduate of The Citadel, Stone served as a captain in the U.S. Army for five years. He is a licensed professional engineer in 19 states and a member of the Society of American Military Engineers.

TERRIE L. SUIT

CEO, VIRGINIA REALTORS, GLEN ALLEN

A former state delegate, Suit has served as CEO of Virginia Realtors since 2013, representing the 36,000 members of the association, which provides education, legal advice, business tools and statewide lobbying services.

Suit began working as a Realtor in 1985 and later worked as a mortgage loan officer.

From 2000 to 2008, she was the Republican delegate representing Chesapeake and Virginia Beach. As a delegate, she served on the Virginia Housing Commission, where she worked with its chair, Sen. Phil Mims, to develop the Virginia Fair Housing Office. Suit later chaired the commission and sponsored numerous commission bills shaping state housing policy.

After retiring from the House of Delegates, she served as then-Gov. Robert F. McDonnell’s secretary of veterans affairs and homeland security, the first person to hold the post.

Suit holds degrees from Tidewater Community College, Old Dominion University and the University of Mary Washington, where she earned her MBA. She also has served on several committees at the National Association of Realtors.

ALBERT G. ‘BEAU’ VAN METRE JR.

CHAIRMAN AND PARTNER, VAN METRE COS. INC., FAIRFAX

After nearly four decades at the real estate development company, Van Metre was appointed as vice chairman, then promoted to chairman and a trustee for the Van Metre Family Trust in 2008. As of 2018, the nearly 700-employee firm reported $1 billion in assets.

The Van Metre portfolio of companies includes several subsidiaries covering the development and construction of homes, apartments, commercial real estate and recreation. The firm also offers financial services and has funded more than $2 billion worth of mortgages.

Van Metre Cos. has developed large shopping centers in Fairfax and Loudoun counties, as well as in Washington, D.C. The company currently owns and manages more than 1 million square feet of commercial space and 3,500 apartments.

In his philanthropic life, Van Metre is recognized for his philanthropic involvement with Capital Caring, which named its Van Metre Campus for him. After donating 37 acres of land in Ashburn to George Mason University in 2009, the university renamed an academic building in 2019 in honor of the Van Metre Cos. Valued at more than $20 million, the land will be sold to support university programs.

C. LEE WARFIELD

PRESIDENT AND CEO, CUSHMAN & WAKEFIELD | THALHIMER, RICHMOND

Warfield has spent 25 years of his career at Thalhimer, representing Walmart, Sam’s Club, Home Depot and Kroger, among other large retailers, over the years. In 2011, he became the company’s president and in 2016 was named CEO. During his tenure, the company has opened offices in Hampton Roads, western Virginia and South Carolina. He also serves on the board of directors of Sports Backers, which organizes running and cycling races in the Richmond area, including the Richmond Marathon. He plays basketball and tennis, as well as coaching youth basketball and baseball.

EDUCATION: James Madison University (B.S.)

BEST ADVICE: Treat others as you would like to be treated. Whatever you do, work hard and reward will follow.

NEW LIFE EXPERIENCE RECENTLY: I recently purchased a banjo. I have always admired those who could play an instrument well. I have no musical talent but mastering an instrument is on my bucket list.

FAVORITE SPORTS TEAM: Boston Celtics

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Government | Politics

AMANDA CHASE

SENATOR, SENATE OF VIRGINIA, CHESTERFIELD

Chase is a proud, even defiant, conservative. She is an adamant backer of gun rights who has been known to pack heat on the statehouse floor, and she believes that abortion should be outlawed.

A Virginia Tech graduate and former campaign manager for several conservative Virginia candidates, Chase joined the state Senate in 2016. In February, she became the first Republican to formally announce she would seek the GOP nomination for governor. Deriding moderates, she said, “I’m doubling down.”

A vocal Trump supporter, Chase adopted “Make Virginia Great Again” as her campaign slogan. She also shares the president’s opposition to removing Confederate monuments. In a June 10 Facebook post, Chase wrote, “This isn’t about destroying Confederate history, it’s about destroying WHITE HISTORY.”

The post was among Chase’s statements cited by the Northern Virginia Chamber of Commerce when it disinvited Chase from speaking in July, saying her comments and actions appeal to “bigotry and hate.” Chase demanded an apology, calling the chamber’s statements defamatory.

Kicked out of the Chesterfield County Republican Party in September 2019 after feuding with the local sheriff, Chase says, “I’m a mom who fights for everyone and have proven I can get things done for the people of my district.”

JAMES W. ‘JIM’ DYKE JR.

SENIOR ADVISOR, STATE GOVERNMENT RELATIONS, MCGUIREWOODS CONSULTING LLC, TYSONS

Lobbyist Jim Dyke has been a prominent figure in Virginia politics for 30 years, since he served as
Gov. L. Douglas Wilder’s secretary of education.

His clients include three universities — George Washington, Marymount and the foundation at George Mason University. And he’s a member of the powerful Virginia Growth and Opportunity (GO Virginia) Board, which allocates funding for economic development initiatives across the commonwealth.

Also a board member of the Virginia Early Childhood Foundation, Dyke chaired the Greater Washington Board of Trade and the Fairfax County Chamber of Commerce. He also has taught at both the Howard University and the University of Virginia law schools.

An honors graduate of Howard University and its law school, Dyke has racked up numerous honors, including being named one of the region’s “150 Most Powerful People” by Washingtonian magazine and receiving the Northern Virginia Chamber of Commerce “Lifetime Achievement Award.”

BEST ADVICE: Always keep the door of opportunity open for those who follow you

FIRST JOB: Cashier at A&P grocery store

MOST RECENT BOOK READ: “Between The World And Me,” by Ta-Nehisi Coates

JUSTIN FAIRFAX

LIEUTENANT GOVERNOR, COMMONWEALTH OF VIRGINIA

It’s difficult to tell where Fairfax’s political future is headed, as one of several Democrats seeking the party’s 2021 gubernatorial nomination.

His bid is complicated by the fact that his own party spurned him but stopped short of pushing him out after two women came forward last year accusing Fairfax of sexual assault. No investigation has taken place, and Fairfax denies the claims. He’s also fighting back. He filed a defamation lawsuit against CBS and plans to appeal its February dismissal. He also has continued to argue his innocence on Twitter, more than a year after his accusers went public.

A lawyer, Fairfax earned his juris doctorate from Columbia Law School, where he was a member of the Columbia Law Review. He then served as assistant U.S. attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia and joined the 2004 John Kerry presidential campaign. He was working at Morrison & Foerster LLP before resigning in summer 2019 in the wake of last year’s allegations.

When protests broke out this year in Richmond, calling for the removal of Confederate statues on Monument Avenue, Fairfax was there. He defied the curfew set by political rival Mayor Levar Stoney and demanded that the state-owned statue of Gen. Robert E. Lee come down.

EILEEN FILLER-CORN

SPEAKER, VIRGINIA HOUSE OF DELEGATES, FAIRFAX

One of the biggest reasons Virginia is now considered a blue state boils down to geography. Northern Virginia is a Democratic stronghold, and this is where Filler-Corn emerged, winning a special election by a hair in 2010 to succeed David Marsden, who was elected to the state Senate.

Filler-Corn became minority leader of the Virginia House of Delegates in 2019, placing her in a prime leadership role during a pivotal election season. In a major power shift, Democrats took control of the Virginia General Assembly for the first time since 1993.

The more moderate Filler-Corn was chosen as speaker of the House, becoming the first woman, and first Jewish person, to hold the position in the legislative body’s 400-year history. Filler-Corn previously served as director of intergovernmental affairs for Govs. Mark Warner and Tim Kaine and as director of government relations at Arlington-based lobbying and consulting firm Albers & Co.

In her first session as speaker, the House passed a number of gun-control bills, as well as a raft of other Democratic priorities including LGBTQ nondiscrimination legislation, a sweeping clean energy act, decriminalizing simple possession of marijuana, increasing the minimum wage and ratifying the Equal Rights Amendment.

JENNIFER CARROLL FOY

DELEGATE, VIRGINIA HOUSE OF DELEGATES, WOODBRIDGE

“Black girls like me” were told they wouldn’t amount to much, Foy once told an interviewer. However, “my grandmother … had different plans. She believed I had a lot to give.”

Foy now aims to make history, running to become the country’s first Black female governor and Virginia’s first female governor.

At age 17, the Petersburg native made history, too, winning a full scholarship to Virginia Military Institute in VMI’s third class of female cadets. After earning her law degree, she worked as a magistrate judge, public defender and defense attorney. Her 2017 statehouse bid was based on a platform of expanding Medicaid, raising the minimum wage and enacting criminal justice reform. As a delegate, she led the successful vote to pass the Equal Rights Amendment.

At VMI, Foy says, she was required to salute a statue of Confederate Gen. Thomas “Stonewall” Jackson every morning. Instead, she said, “I would … turn my eyes to the flag” and the values it represents.

“I’ve dedicated my entire life to fighting for those who cannot fight for themselves. I will continue to fight as the next governor of Virginia,” says Foy, who formally announced her bid for the 2021 Democratic gubernatorial nomination in May.

C. TODD GILBERT

HOUSE MINORITY LEADER, VIRGINIA HOUSE OF DELEGATES, SHENANDOAH

A member of the Virginia House of Delegates since 2006, Gilbert is the body’s current minority leader and former majority leader.

The pro-business Republican conservative and former prosecutor has received numerous awards during his legislative tenure for his work on social and public safety issues. He was named a Defender of Liberty by the American Conservative Union and 2013 legislator of the year by the Family Foundation. The Virginia Chamber of Commerce bestowed the same honor upon him in 2017.

Gilbert has an A-plus rating from the National Rifle Association and has received the Virginia Association of Commonwealth’s Attorneys’ “Champion of Justice Award.” His statehouse work also has been recognized by the Virginia Association of Chiefs of Police and the Virginia State Police Association. For his work with the Model General Assembly in Richmond, Gilbert also won the Virginia YMCA’s Service to Youth Award.

Gilbert most recently was in the news for his objection to Gov. Ralph Northam’s COVID-19 directive making mask-wearing mandatory indoors, and, in late May, Gilbert said that the possibility of taking legal action about the measure was under consideration.

CHARNIELE L. HERRING

HOUSE MAJORITY LEADER, VIRGINIA HOUSE OF DELEGATES, ALEXANDRIA

Herring had an early start in politics. At age 13, when Ronald Reagan was president, she testified before a government commission about health care coverage for military dependent children. After earning her juris doctorate from The Catholic University of America, former Gov. Tim Kaine appointed her to the state’s Council on the Status of Women. Ever since, she has been a champion of social justice and police reform.

In 2016, Herring was a main sponsor of legislation requiring police officer-involved shootings to be listed in a yearly crime report.

“I don’t think we should have police officers investigating themselves,” Herring said in an interview with the Virginia Mercury. “I think getting it out of police officers’ hands will help because I think it will help ensure that the data is collected.”

Herring also supported Gov. Ralph Northam’s efforts to make Juneteenth a state holiday.

In 2009, Herring became the first Black woman elected to represent Northern Virginia in Richmond, and in 2012, she became the first African American to chair the Democratic Party of Virginia. She has been the House Democratic Caucus chair since 2015.

MARK HERRING

ATTORNEY GENERAL, COMMONWEALTH
OF VIRGINIA

Herring, a Democrat, has lived in Loudoun County since he was 12. He practiced law in Leesburg and represented the area as a state senator.

The two-term Virginia attorney general, who’s eyeing a 2021 gubernatorial bid, vowed this summer to do what it takes to give Gov. Ralph Northam the right to remove the state-owned Robert E. Lee monument from its prominent pedestal on Richmond’s Monument Avenue, writing that the governor “has both the authority and the moral obligation to remove this badge of white supremacy from its place of exaltation.”

Such positions, which he’s applied to other monuments in Virginia, might be hard to reconcile for people who felt betrayed when he apologized in 2019 for donning blackface at a party in 1980 while he was a University of Virginia student.

WHAT WOULD A COMPETITOR SAY ABOUT YOU? “He is relentless. He just will not give up.”

HOBBY/PASSION: Gardening

FIRST JOB: When I was 14, I bought 36 hens and I sold the eggs to my neighbors. That was my first entrepreneurial venture.

JANET D. HOWELL

CHAIR, SENATE FINANCE AND APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE, SENATE OF VIRGINIA, RESTON

“Numerous significant bills that have failed under Republican majorities will pass this session,” said Howell, who in January assumed chairmanship of one of the most powerful committees in the legislature after Democrats took control of the General Assembly. Perhaps needless to say, her predictions have come to pass.

Laws enacted by the new Democratic-majority legislature include ratification of the Equal Rights Amendment and measures to improve gun safety and protect the environment. Voter protections were beefed up, abortion restrictions were eased and a state holiday honoring Gens. Thomas “Stonewall” Jackson and Robert E. Lee was abolished, while Election Day was designated a state holiday. The minimum wage, raised from $7.25 to $9.50, was slated to rise in January, but concerns about the economic effects of COVID-19 led to the increase being pushed back to May 2021. “I think it should go into effect now,” Howell said at the time.

Before her 1991 election to the Virginia State Senate (where she represents Fairfax County), she served as a legislative assistant in the Senate from 1989 to 1991. She also previously served as chair of the State Board of Social Services.

TIM KAINE

SENATOR, UNITED STATES SENATE, RICHMOND

A household name in Virginia, Kaine married into the political life. His wife, former Virginia Secretary of Education Anne Holton, spent her early teen years in Virginia’s Executive Mansion while her father, A. Linwood Holton Jr., served as governor.

A lawyer specializing in housing discrimination, Kaine won election to Richmond City Council in 1994 at age 36, becoming mayor in 1998. He became lieutenant governor in 2002, served as governor from 2006 to 2010, and then was elected Virginia’s junior U.S. senator in 2012.

But it was a call from Hillary Clinton that catapulted Kaine onto the national stage. As Clinton’s 2016 vice presidential running mate, Kaine crisscrossed the country pushing her agenda, highlighting his Spanish-speaking skills and rallying voters.

The election may not have gone his way, but his profile in the Senate was considerably elevated. He serves on the Armed Services Committee and has been a highly visible critic of the Trump administration on 24-hour news channels and in national media.

Recently, he was one of 133 co-sponsors of the Justice in Policing Act of 2020, an attempt to address police brutality concerns in the wake of George Floyd’s death. “The right way to deal with this,” Kaine said, “is accountability in the discipline of systems in police departments.”

TERRY McAULIFFE

FORMER GOVERNOR OF VIRGINIA; GLOBAL STRATEGY ADVISER, HUNTON ANDREWS KURTH LLP, McLEAN

A Clinton family confidant, former Virginia Gov. McAuliffe was nearly three-fourths of the way through his term when Hillary Clinton lost her 2016 bid for president — upending any hopes he may have harbored about joining her administration.

But McAuliffe wasn’t about to ride off into the sunset after his term ended in January 2018.

Amid speculation that he’d run against President Donald Trump in 2020, McAuliffe took the idea off the table in April 2019. In July 2019, he published his second book, “Beyond Charlottesville: Taking a Stand Against White Nationalism,” and later in 2019 took a job as global strategy adviser for the Centre for Information Policy Leadership, a Washington, D.C.-based think tank run by Hunton Andrews Kurth LLP.

McAuliffe also spent much of 2019 campaigning for Virginia Democrats, who secured a statehouse majority for the first time in 26 years.

But McAuliffe may also have been laying his own foundation as Virginia’s once and future governor. Eyeing a 2021 gubernatorial run, he raised $1.7 million in May and June via his political action committee, Common Good VA.

McAuliffe served as chair of the Democratic National Committee from 2001 to 2005. Before his political career, McAuliffe co-founded the Federal City National Bank, becoming its chairman at age 30.

JENNIFER L. McCLELLAN

SENATOR, SENATE OF VIRGINIA, RICHMOND

McClellan wants to make history. In June, she declared her candidacy for the Democratic nomination for governor, and, if she prevails over what is sure to be a crowded field, she would be the first woman and the second African American — L. Douglas Wilder was the first — to hold the job.

“I am not running to be a Black woman governor of Virginia. I’m running in order to create a future that comes to terms with our past,” McClellan told ABC News.

The corporate lawyer for Verizon Wireless has represented her district for 11 years as a delegate and four years as a senator. During her statehouse tenure, she has taken the lead on bills to ratify the Equal Rights Amendment and to build a state-based health exchange under the Affordable Care Act. She also spearheaded efforts to stop workplace and housing discrimination.

A graduate of the University of Richmond and the University of Virginia School of Law, McClellan is vice chair of the state Democratic Party and is a member of the Virginia Legislative Black Caucus.

THOMAS K. ‘TOMMY’ NORMENT

SENATE MINORITY LEADER, SENATE OF VIRGINIA, WILLIAMSBURG

In his nearly 30-year career as a Republican state senator, Norment has been known as an advocate of right-to-work laws, higher education and transparency in government. He is reliably pro-business.

Although Norment heads the Senate Republican Caucus, last month he lost his seats on the Virginia Growth and Opportunity Board, the Commission on Electric Utility Regulations and the Commission on Employee Retirement Security and Pension Reform, replaced by newly empowered Democrats.

Norment’s career has not been without controversy, including a DUI charge, an admitted extramarital affair and being an editor of the 1968 Virginia Military Institute yearbook that included photographs of students in Ku Klux Klan robes and blackface. (Norment has condemned the use of blackface, noting he did not take or appear in any of the photos.)

Norment earned his law degree from William & Mary and is an attorney with Kaufman & Canoles. He has served on organizations such as the Colonial Williamsburg board of trustees and the Jamestown-Yorktown Foundation board of directors.

Northam. Portrait courtesy Office of Governor Northam

RALPH NORTHAM

GOVERNOR, COMMONWEALTH OF VIRGINIA

Having a medical doctor serve as Virginia governor during a global pandemic seems like the stars aligned. But Gov. Ralph Northam, a pediatric neurologist, has had plenty of ups and downs while managing the COVID-19 crisis, including taking criticism from Republicans over his mandates that Virginians must wear facial coverings indoors.

He’s been in the spotlight increasingly during the pandemic, tapping into his public platform during regular news conferences and navigating the perils of reopening the commonwealth for commerce.

An Eastern Shore native who served in the Army, Northam was a state senator from 2008 to 2014 and served as lieutenant governor from 2014 to 2018, until he was sworn in as Virginia’s 73rd governor.

Despite many pundits and politicos pronouncing his political career dead after a yearbook blackface scandal captured national press in February 2019, Northam rebranded himself as a warrior for racial equity. He added a chief diversity officer to his Cabinet, is making Juneteenth a permanent paid state holiday and quickly waded into the debate over removing Confederate iconography, vowing to take down the state-owned statue of Gen. Robert E. Lee on Richmond’s historic Monument Avenue.

Northam also has seen his party grow in power, recapturing the General Assembly for the first time in a generation.

LARRY SABATO

ROBERT KENT GOOCH PROFESSOR OF POLITICS, UNIVERSITY OF VIRGINIA, CHARLOTTESVILLE

The director of the University of Virginia’s Center for Politics and a frequently quoted pundit by state and national media, Sabato has built a reputation as a political soothsayer. His political newsletter and website, “Sabato’s Crystal Ball,” outlines potential electoral outcomes for federal and state contests.

Earlier this year, Sabato’s political acumen was the target of a Trump tweet in which the president said Sabato, who’d predicted a Clinton victory, “never had a clue” about the demographics of voters in 2016. Sabato tweeted back, listing other targets of Trump’s wrath, such as Lt. Col. Alexander Vindman, who testified during Trump impeachment hearings and, as a result, lost his job with the National Security Council.

“I had no idea I was in such good company,” Sabato tweeted.

The author of more than 20 books and many essays, Sabato is known for his sometimes sardonic, even sarcastic, commentary, such as, “I doubt God would want to touch America’s tax code, since it is already located in the third rung of Hell.”

The Norfolk-born Sabato is a Phi Beta Kappa graduate of U.Va., where, as an undergraduate, he was president of the student government. He holds a doctorate in politics from Oxford University.

RICHARD ‘DICK’ SASLAW

SENATE MAJORITY LEADER, SENATE OF VIRGINIA, FAIRFAX

The most senior member of the General Assembly, Saslaw began his state political career when he was elected to the House of Delegates in 1976. He’s served in the state Senate since 1980.

A University of Maryland graduate, Saslaw is Senate majority leader and chairman of the Commerce and Labor committee.

His seniority proves an advantage to his priorities, such as Medicaid expansion, an issue under debate for years and one of Gov. Northam’s early wins.

Saslaw is considered more moderate, compared with younger, more progressive colleagues in the House and Senate. In 2020, he blocked a bill banning assault weapons and an energy bill that would have cut into Dominion Energy‘s profits.

Saslaw says the 2021 General Assembly session will address the issues coming to the forefront in racial justice protests across the nation. In a June editorial, Saslaw and state Sen. Mamie E. Locke wrote, “Over the coming months, we will be introducing measures to incorporate mandatory implicit-bias training for law enforcement across Virginia, reform parole, sentencing, expungement and barrier crimes, and eliminate mandatory minimum sentences in a system that has disproportionately impacted Black Virginians.”

LUKE TORIAN

CHAIR, HOUSE APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE, VIRGINIA HOUSE OF DELEGATES, PRINCE WILLIAM

In June, Torian beat his primary challenger by a whopping 53 points. Now, his chances of election to a sixth term in the House of Delegates are just about a lock, because, as has been the case since 2011, he is running unopposed.

A minister for more than 35 years, Torian is the pastor of First Mount Zion Baptist Church in Dumfries.

As a legislator, he has passed more than 40 bills and resolutions to improve criminal justice policies, expand Medicaid and promote retirement security and raise pay for teachers. He received a perfect 100% score from the abortion-rights organization NARAL, and a score of zero from the Virginia Citizens Defense League, a conservative gun-rights organization. In 2020, Torian introduced the Community Policing Act, which requires police officers to record the race of drivers they pull over and provide information about racial profiling. It took effect July 1.

Torian’s honors include winning the Virginia Education Association’s Solid as a Rock award five times and being named the 2019 Legislator of the Year by the Virginia chapters of the Military Officers Association of America.

MARK WARNER

SENATOR, UNITED STATES SENATE, ALEXANDRIA

It’s been about 25 years since Mark Warner first ran for public office — not including his terms as class president at Rockville High School. He made a bold move to run against popular Republican Sen. John Warner in 1996 and lost. But the close race paved the way for his successful bid for Virginia governor in 2002.

When his term ended, Mark Warner made a successful Senate run for after John Warner retired. He will seek his third term in the November elections. He serves as vice chair of the Senate Intelligence Committee, which put him in national headlines during the Mueller probe of Russian interference with the 2016 election.

His savvy buying and trading of cellular franchise licenses in the mid-’80s helped him amass a fortune of more than $200 million, ranking him among the wealthiest members of Congress.

BEST ADVICE: Don’t be afraid to fail. I personally failed not once but twice before I found success in business. … Had I been afraid to try again after my first two failures, I wouldn’t be where I am today.

BEVERAGE OF CHOICE: Milkshakes count as a beverage, right?

MOST RECENT BOOK READ: “The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness,” by Michelle Alexander

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Manufacturing

R. MARCUS ‘MARC’ AMMEN

CEO, UNIVERSAL FIBER SYSTEMS LLC, BRISTOL

Ammen, who has served as CEO of Universal Fiber since 2009, joined the company in 2000 as chief financial officer and previously was president of Universal Fibers Inc., one of the corporation’s affiliates. Founded in 1969 in Bristol, Tennessee, the company has two units: Bristol, Virginia-based Universal Fibers Inc., which produces dyed, synthetic yarn for the flooring, transportation and industrial fibers industries, and North Carolina-based Premiere Fibers Inc., which produces fibers for industrial, military and apparel markets. In May 2019, Universal Fibers Inc. opened its new European plant in Poland.

Locally, it donated plastic filament to the Bristol Public Library for use with a new 3D printer. The company also received the United Way of Southwest Virginia’s Top Giver Award last year. In 2015, H.I.G. Middle Market, an affiliate of the $19 billion H.I.G. Capital equity fund, purchased Universal Fiber for an undisclosed amount. A graduate of Clemson University, Ammen is on the Carpet and Rug Institute’s board of directors and previously served on the GO Virginia District 1 Council.

TOM BELL

CHAIRMAN AND CEO, ROLLS-ROYCE NORTH AMERICA; PRESIDENT – DEFENCE, ROLLS-ROYCE HOLDINGS PLC, RESTON

Named chairman and CEO of Rolls-Royce’s North American branch in 2018, Bell also is responsible for the global defense arm of the vehicle manufacturer, which builds jet engines and products for the naval and nuclear submarine industries. As leader of Rolls-Royce North America, Bell oversees 7,000 employees, including more than 400 in Virginia. Rolls-Royce has its regional headquarters in Reston and a manufacturing plant in Prince George County that builds rotating parts used in Boeing and Airbus planes.

Before joining Rolls-Royce in 2012, Bell was at the former Martin Marietta Inc. (now Lockheed Martin), where he worked in human space flight, and at McDonnell Douglas (now Boeing) in departments including sales and engineering. A New Jersey native, Bell is a graduate of Louisiana State University and the Florida Institute of Technology, from which he received his MBA. He serves on the board for the Aerospace Industries Association.

MARTIN BJUVE

PRESIDENT, VOLVO PENTA OF THE AMERICAS, CHESAPEAKE

Bjuve became president of Volvo Penta of the Americas in January, following the late 2019 retirement of Ron Huibers. The Sweden native had previously been the chief financial officer and senior vice president of Volvo Penta of the Americas.

As part of the Volvo Group (which reported $43.4 billion in sales last year), Chesapeake-based Volvo Penta is a global manufacturer of engines and complete power systems for boats, vessels and industrial applications. Volvo Penta employs approximately 1,800 people, including 120 in Virginia. Its products are sold through 3,500 dealers in more than 130 countries.

BEST ADVICE: You don’t build a network when you need a network, you build it before. Take time to cultivate relationships both inside and outside of your industry.

MOST RECENT BOOK READ: “Fever,” by Deon Meyer. I had goosebumps reading this book as we all navigate the ongoing pandemic in our world today.

HOBBY/PASSION: I’m a big fan of being outdoors, participating in activities such as skiing, kitesurfing and golfing. I’m also an avid boater.

CRAIG C. BRAM

PRESIDENT AND CEO, SYNALLOY CORP., HENRICO COUNTY

Bram, who had his own consulting firm in Richmond since 1995, joined Synalloy in 2004 as a director and was named president and CEO in 2011, after serving for six years on the board. A graduate of James Madison University and Virginia Commonwealth University, Bram has worked in business management, strategic planning, finance and startup operations for more than 30 years. Synalloy, which has been in business for more than 75 years, is a holding company for businesses that make stainless steel pipes and liquid storage tanks and it employs more than 700 people.

Among its holdings is Brismet, which builds pipes in Bristol, Tennessee. In March, activist investment firm Privet Fund Management LLC teamed with UPG Enterprises, another holding company with steel businesses, in an attempt to take control of Synalloy’s board of directors after Synalloy turned down two buyout offers. In June, Synalloy committed to appointing three of Privet and UPG’s nominees to the eight-person board. Synalloy posted revenue of $305 million for 2019.

RÉGIS BROERSMA

PRESIDENT, GENERAL CIGAR CO. INC., RICHMOND

Broersma joined Scandinavian Tobacco Group, the parent company of Richmond-based General Cigar Co., in 2002 and became president in 2016. Three years later, he stepped down as president to head Scandinavian Tobacco Group’s smoking tobacco and accessories division. He reclaimed his position as General Cigar Co. president in April. With his reappointment, he will also serve as Scandinavian Tobacco Group’s senior vice president, overseeing business in North America, Australia, New Zealand and Asia.

As one of the world’s largest cigar and pipe tobacco companies, General Cigar reported approximately $185 million in sales last year, when Scandinavian Tobacco Group reported more than $1 billion in revenue. General Cigar produces more than 60 cigar brands, including Cohiba, Hoyo de Monterrey, Punch, La Gloria Cubana and Partagas, and exports its products to more than 60 countries.

General Cigar employs approximately 3,800 people across its sales offices, retail stores and production facilities. Some of its facilities are located in Honduras, the Dominican Republic and Nicaragua.

ALAN CONNOR

PRESIDENT AND CEO, CADENCE INC., STAUNTON

A Pittsburgh native and a pilot, Connor became president of Cadence in 2011 after about 20 years in the medical device industry. He is chairman of the Virginia Biotechnology Association’s board and advises several medical device startup businesses. Cadence produces minimally invasive surgical devices.

Connor joined the company after serving as general manager and vice president of operations of Microaire Surgical Instruments in Charlottesville and in several roles at Pennsylvania-based Medrad Inc. He earned industrial engineering and MBA degrees from Penn State and the University of Pittsburgh. Last year, Cadence purchased the assets of Arcor Laser Services LLC, a laser welding and cutting company in Connecticut.

Founded in 1985, Cadence employs 575 people in Staunton and has four other facilities in Connecticut, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island and Wisconsin. In 2018, Cadence was sold to New York private equity firm Kohlberg & Co. for an undisclosed amount, and its management team remained in place.

M. SCOTT CULBRETH

PRESIDENT AND CEO, AMERICAN WOODMARK, WINCHESTER

Culbreth was promoted to president and CEO of the Winchester-based cabinetry manufacturer in July during a leadership overhaul following an internal investigation that found that R. Perry Campbell, senior vice president of sales and commercial operations, had violated American Woodmark’s policy and values.

Former president and CEO S. Cary Dunston retired and resigned from the board, and Culbreth, former senior vice president and chief financial officer, was promoted to replace Dunston. The company did not provide further details of the policies and values that Campbell violated or whether Dunston’s retirement was connected.

Culbreth has been with American Woodmark since 2014 and had previously served as CFO for Piedmont Hardware Brands. He also worked for Shell Oil Co., Robert Bosch Corp. and Newell Brands. He earned his bachelor’s degree in finance from Virginia Tech and his MBA from Washington University in St. Louis.

Founded in 1980, American Woodmark operates 18 manufacturing facilities in the United States and Mexico, employing more than 10,000 people across its 15 brands. The publicly traded company reported more than $1.65 billion in sales last year.

BRYAN FAIRBANKS

PRESIDENT AND CEO, TREX CO. INC., WINCHESTER

Fairbanks was promoted to president and CEO of the publicly traded decking manufacturing company in April following the retirement of James E. Cline. Fairbanks, who joined Trex in 2004, previously was executive vice president and chief financial officer and served in director positions for financial planning, business development and supply chain operations. Before Trex, he held senior finance roles with Ford Motor Co. Trex reported $745 million in revenue for 2019, selling wood-alternative decking, railings and outdoor items made from recycled materials. The company employs a total of 1,332 people, including 700 in Virginia. Trex in 2018 invested $200 million to increase production capacity in Frederick County and Nevada. An expansion of its Frederick facility is expected to come online in early 2021, creating more than 150 jobs.

PERSON I ADMIRE: Warren Buffett — I admire his discipline and patience in identifying opportunities for investment.

NEW LIFE EXPERIENCE RECENTLY: Being appointed president and CEO of a company during a pandemic.

WHAT’S ONE THING YOU WOULD CHANGE ABOUT VIRGINIA? Improving our transportation infrastructure.

FAVORITE SPORTS TEAM: Pittsburgh Steelers

BJOERN FISCHER

PRESIDENT, STIHL INC., VIRGINIA BEACH

In 2016, Fischer was appointed president of Stihl Inc., headquarters for U.S. operations of the Stihl Group, the German global manufacturer of home and professional power equipment such as chainsaws, leaf blowers and trimmers. Stihl Inc. has about 1,900 employees in Virginia Beach. Fischer joined Stihl Inc. in 2012, previously serving as its vice president of finance, human resources and information services.

A South Africa native, Fischer graduated from the University of Cape Town and worked for two decades at Siemens Industry Inc., where he served as chief financial officer for its water technologies global business unit. Among his business and civic commitments, he has chaired the board of the Outdoor Power Equipment Institute, as well as serving on the Hampton Roads Chamber board and the Executive Advisory Council for Old Dominion University’s Strome College of Business and Public Administration.

In 2019, Stihl Inc. built a new administration building at its 150-acre U.S. headquarters campus in Virginia Beach, where it has been since 1974. Since 2011, Stihl Inc. has hosted a summer camp for Virginia Beach-area high school students to learn about new manufacturing and engineering technology.

WILLIAM F. ‘BILLY’ GIFFORD JR.

CEO, ALTRIA GROUP INC., RICHMOND

Gifford took the helm of the tobacco giant in April, following the retirement of former CEO and Chairman Howard Willard. Gifford began serving as interim CEO in March when Willard took a medical leave of absence after testing positive for COVID-19. Gifford was officially tapped as CEO in April, and Altria’s board separated the positions of chairman and CEO, selecting Dominion Energy Executive Chair Thomas F. Farrell II as Altria’s independent chair.

Altria is the Henrico County-based Fortune 500 parent company of cigarette manufacturer Philip Morris USA and also holds a 35% stake in San Francisco-based e-cigarette producer Juul Labs Inc. Altria reported more than $25 billion in 2019 revenue.

Gifford is the former president and CEO of Philip Morris USA and serves as a director for Anheuser-Busch InBev SA/NV. One of the world’s largest manufacturers of cigarettes and tobacco products, Altria also holds equity stakes in Anheuser-Busch InBev and Canadian cannabis company Cronos Group Inc.

A Virginia Commonwealth University alum, he had been with the company for more than 25 years before his promotion, serving in roles including executive vice president and chief financial officer. Before his time with Altria, he worked at Coopers & Lybrand (now PricewaterhouseCoopers).

THOMAS E.‘TEDDY’ GOTTWALD

CHAIRMAN, PRESIDENT AND CEO, NEWMARKET CORP., RICHMOND

Gottwald heads up Richmond-based petroleum additives company NewMarket Corp., the parent company of Afton Chemical Corp., Ethyl Corp. and NewMarket Services. He became president and CEO in 2004 when the NewMarket holding company was created and has been board chairman since 2014. He was previously president and CEO of Ethyl. His father, Bruce C. Gottwald, is a board member and was previously chairman of NewMarket and Ethyl.

Regularly listed by Forbes magazine as one of America’s richest families, the Gottwalds have led the company — which reported more than $2.1 billion in sales last year — for more than
58 years. Philanthropically, the Gottwald family has been a longtime supporter of the Science Museum of Virginia and owns the Tredegar property, home to the American Civil War Museum.

Gottwald received his bachelor’s degree in chemistry from Virginia Military Institute, where he currently serves on the board of visitors. He also serves on the boards of VMI Jackson-Hope Fund, Venture Richmond and the VCU College of Engineering. He is also a member of The Management Round Table in Richmond.

DALE GUIDRY

PRESIDENT AND CEO, TMEIC CORP., ROANOKE

In 2007, Guidry took leadership of TMEIC General Electric after holding engineering and executive roles with GE. In 2011, Tokyo-based Toshiba Mitsubishi-Electric Industrial Systems (TMEIC) Corp. bought out GE’s share of the joint venture, a move that also placed Guidry in charge of developing growth strategies and business plans for the corporation’s subsidiary companies in Asia, Europe and South America. During his tenure, TMEIC Corp. has tripled in size, significantly increasing its profits.

A graduate of Duke and Stanford universities with degrees in mechanical engineering and materials science and engineering, Guidry started his career as a research engineer at The Timken Co., where he developed new grades of steel for manufacturing tapered roller bearings and innovated the use of computer simulations. At GE, he developed, engineered and installed computer models for automatically controlling hot and cold rolling processes for steel and other metals.

WHAT I’VE LEARNED: One person dedicated and determined can accomplish a tremendous amount, but a team with the same dedication and determination has no limit to what they can accomplish.

MOST RECENT BOOK READ: “The New Iberia Blues,” by James Lee Burke

GINA HARM

PRESIDENT, AFTON CHEMICAL CORP., RICHMOND

In 2018, Harm was named president of Afton Chemical, a subsidiary of Richmond’s NewMarket Corp., after joining the company in 2007. In announcing the promotion, NewMarket Chairman, President and CEO Teddy Gottwald cited Harm’s “extensive knowledge of the market, strong leadership skills and results-driven mindset.”

She has worked in the chemical industry for more than three decades and oversaw procurement, engineering, manufacturing and logistics as Afton’s senior vice president and chief operating officer. She also previously served as Afton’s vice president in charge of supply, performance additives and lube additives and worked for General Electric in marketing and pricing. Afton is a global leader in petroleum additives for gasoline, power steering fluid and other chemicals used for vehicles.

In 2018, the company completed the $380 million expansion of its chemical additive plant in Singapore, its Southeast Asia distribution hub and in 2019 grew its Japan Technology Center, where the company tests engine oils, gear lubricants and transmission fluids. Both projects are in response to Asian countries’ reduction of vehicle fuel economy standards, which will lead to more electric and hybrid cars on roads.

STEVEN HIRE

PRESIDENT, CHEMTREAT INC., GLEN ALLEN

Named president of industrial water treatment company ChemTreat in 2010, Hire has an extensive background in branding and marketing. A graduate of the University of Minnesota’s Carlson School of Management with a degree in marketing, Hire previously served as senior vice president and general manager of Acuity Brands Lighting, general manager at Fluke Corp. and corporate director of Danaher Corp.’s DBS Growth Tools.

A subsidiary of Danaher Corp., ChemTreat was purchased by the Washington, D.C.-based holding company in 2007 after being in business since 1968. In July, ChemTreat won the 2019 Supplier of the Year award in the sustainability category from the Boeing Co., a client since 2012.

In April 2019, Hire broke ground on a $10 million applied technology lab in Hanover County, which is being built across the street from its manufacturing plant. ChemTreat has locations in North and South America, and it has acquired other chemical treatment companies over the past decade, including USP Technologies, purchased in 2019.

DAVID JOHNSON

DUPONT SPRUANCE SITE DIRECTOR, DUPONT DE NEMOURS INC., CHESTERFIELD COUNTY

Johnson joined DuPont as site director of its largest plant in the world in 2018, after a long career in chemical engineering and operations for Invista, Kraton Polymers, Huntsman and other companies. A graduate of North Carolina State University, Johnson serves on the executive committee for the Virginia Manufacturers Association and the board of Virginia Forever, a coalition of businesses and environmental organizations focused on protecting natural resources.

DuPont Spruance has seen a lot of change in the past year, with its announcement that it will expand its Kevlar plant by investing $75 million. Plus, during the start of the pandemic, it partnered with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and FedEx to produce protective clothing and distribute it around the country. The plant’s 2,000 workers began taking on 12-hour shifts seven days a week in March. In 2019, Johnson received a certificate in leading operational excellence from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s executive education program.

SCOTT KEOGH

CEO AND PRESIDENT, VOLKSWAGEN GROUP OF AMERICA INC., HERNDON

Named head of Volkswagen’s U.S., Mexican and Canadian presence in 2018, Keogh was previously president of Audi of America, part of the Volkswagen Group of vehicle lines. In his current position, he oversees the U.S. operations of Audi, Bentley, Bugatti, Lamborghini and VW Credit Inc. Before joining Audi in 2006 as chief marketing officer, Keogh worked for Mercedes-Benz USA. In an interview last year, Keogh said his first car was a Volkswagen Rabbit with a manual transmission.

He stepped into a challenging role in 2018, following the $33.3 billion international diesel emissions scandal, in which Volkswagen AG was revealed in 2015 as having faked emissions tests. The fallout led to more than 8 million cars being recalled and hundreds of lawsuits. Keogh came to the job having doubled sales of Audis between 2010 to 2015 and is the first American to oversee Volkswagen’s North American operations in 25 years. His current focus is developing three new all-electric Volkswagens, including a VW microbus, in 2022. A graduate of Hobart and William Smith Colleges, he is a native of New York.

FRANKY MARCHAND

VICE PRESIDENT AND GENERAL MANAGER, VOLVO GROUP TRUCKS OPERATIONS IN AMERICAS, PULASKI

Marchand serves as vice president and general manager at Volvo Trucks North America’s New River Valley plant — the largest Volvo truck plant in the world. The New River Valley plant is the only North American producer of Volvo trucks. It operates in 1.6 million square feet of manufacturing space.

The New River Valley plant alone employs 3,500 people, with 130 robots used for painting vehicles. In June 2019, Volvo Group announced plans to invest nearly $400 million, add 350,000 square feet to its Dublin complex in Pulaski County and hire 777 new workers over the next six years. But then five months later, Volvo announced it would lay off 700 workers, starting in January.

In late January, however, Volvo Group’s Mack Trucks company announced it would hire 250 people for a new medium-duty truck assembly plant in Roanoke County. Mack Trucks plans to invest $13 million in the project.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, Marchand was appointed to Gov. Ralph Northam’s task force, composed of 24 business leaders (including Amazon and Walmart executives) across the state, asked for policy input on reopening the state for business. Marchand is focusing on ways to maintain appropriate distance among manufacturing employees.

PETER MAYR

PRESIDENT, LIEBHERR CONSTRUCTION EQUIPMENT CO., NEWPORT NEWS

Leader of the Swiss construction equipment company Liebherr Group’s U.S. presence, Mayr has been with the company since 2001, filling roles in Austria, Spain and England. In 2013, he became president of Newport News-based Liebherr Construction Equipment Co. and he continued to lead the U.S. divisions after a corporate realignment in 2016.

The Newport News headquarters, open since 1970, manufactures large mining trucks and cranes, among other large equipment. Work finished in June on the headquarters’ $60 million, 251,000-square-foot expansion, including a new administrative building, production and workshop facility, training center and distribution warehouse.

A graduate of the University of Innsbruck in Austria, his home country, Mayr oversees about 500 employees on the Newport News campus and 1,300 across 13 locations nationwide. In January, Liebherr USA won the Associated Equipment Distributors’ foundation partner award.

GARY M. MIGNOGNA

PRESIDENT AND CEO, FRAMATOME INC., LYNCHBURG

After becoming president and CEO of nuclear equipment supplier Framatome in 2018, Mignogna moved the company’s headquarters from Charlotte, North Carolina, back to Lynchburg, its home until 2006. Its Virginia workforce accounts for about 1,300 of its 2,300 employees in North America.

From 2014 to 2018, Mignogna served as president of Areva Inc., which reverted to the name Framatome after a financial downturn and subsequent rebranding. A graduate of Drexel University and Lynchburg College with degrees in engineering and business, Mignogna is a member of the Nuclear Energy Institute’s board and serves on its executive committee. He also serves on the boards of the National D-Day Memorial and the University of Lynchburg.

Mignogna started his career in 1977 with Babcock & Wilcox Co.’s nuclear services division, which was purchased by France-based Framatome, and in 2006, the Areva Group purchased Framatome. In June, Framatome acquired BWX Technologies Inc.’s commercial nuclear services business, also headquartered in Lynchburg.

JOHN PARKINSON

CEO, DRAKE EXTRUSION INC., RIDGEWAY

Drake’s CEO since 2001, Parkinson has overseen two major expansions of the polypropylene fiber company’s plant in Henry County over the past five years. A subsidiary of Duroc AB’s International Fibres Group, Drake makes yarn for several markets, including automotive, home furnishings and rugs and carpeting, as well as geotextiles for construction sites. In June, Gov. Ralph Northam announced Drake’s $6.9 million purchase and renovation of a vacant building near its current facility in the county, where it employs 187 workers and is one of the region’s largest employers. Drake expects to hire
30 more people upon completion of the project.

Parkinson, a graduate of Lancaster University in Great Britain, is a member of GO Virginia’s Region 3 council, which provides economic development support in the region surrounding Danville and Martinsville, as well as Virginia Career Works’ West Piedmont board and the Martinsville-Henry County Chamber of Commerce’s Partnership for Economic Growth board.

STANLEY PAULEY

CHAIRMAN AND CEO, CARPENTER CO., HENRICO COUNTY

Pauley leads Henrico County-based Carpenter Co., which produces foam and cushioning products out of 100% recycled material. Founded in 1948, the company employs approximately 4,250 people across its 16 foam producing plants and 43 global locations. Last year, the company reported approximately $2 billion in revenue, making it one of the largest private companies to operate in Virginia.

Pauley and his wife, Dorothy, however, are best known for their extensive philanthropic giving in the Central Virginia region. Through the Pauley Family Foundation, the couple has donated millions of dollars to organizations including CenterStage, the Medical College of Virginia Foundation and the Virginia Commonwealth University College of Engineering.

Some of their foundation’s most recent donations include a $5 million gift to the Pauley Heart Center (which was founded in 2006 through another $5 million gift from the family) at the VCU Medical Center to support research and recruitment for its cardiology program, as well as a $30 million gift to Hampden-Sydney College — the college’s largest-ever donation — to fund a new science building (the Pauley Science Center). Carpenter Co. was founded by E. Rhodes Carpenter, who graduated from Hampden-Sydney in 1929.

ROBERT H. ‘ROB’ SPILMAN JR.

CEO, BASSETT FURNITURE INDUSTRIES INC., HENRY COUNTY

Spilman, who has been president and CEO of one of the country’s oldest furniture makers since 2000, also serves on Dominion Energy Inc.’s board of directors, a position he’s held since 2009. His late father, Robert H. Spilman Sr., served as president, CEO and chairman of Bassett Furniture until his retirement in 1997.

A Vanderbilt University alumnus, Spilman Jr. is on the board of trustees of the Virginia Foundation for Independent Colleges and is among the leadership of the Henry County Furniture Museum in the Bassett area. He also served on the corporate board for Harris Teeter Supermarkets Inc. from 2002 to 2014. Bassett Furniture, founded in 1902, has 100 stores and a wholesale business with 700 accounts.

In July, the Martinsville-area manufacturer announced it was investing more revenue into its outdoor furniture brands and it resumed production at its manufacturing locations in late April following closures due to the pandemic.

DAN ST. MARTIN

PRESIDENT, KOLLMORGEN CORP., RADFORD

President of Kollmorgen since 2013, St. Martin previously worked for John Deere in a variety of positions, including as director of the global combine product line in Russia and general manager of a tractor plant in China. Now based in Radford, St. Martin serves on the advisory board of Virginia Tech’s Pamplin College of Business. He has degrees from Dartmouth College’s Tuck School of Business and the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.

Before joining Deere in 2002, St. Martin worked with Deloitte Consulting in strategy and supply chain management. Kollmorgen, with presences in the United States, China, Japan, India, Europe and Brazil, designs and produces servo motors, drives and amplifiers. It’s owned by Massachusetts-based Altra Industrial Motion, which purchased the company and two others in 2018 from Fortive Corp. for $3 billion.

JOHN M. STEITZ

PRESIDENT AND CEO, TREDEGAR CORP., RICHMOND

Steitz became president and CEO of the Chesterfield County-based plastic films and aluminum extrusions manufacturer in 2019 following the retirement of John D. Gottwald, who had served in the role for
30 years. Steitz had served on Tredegar’s board of directors since 2017 while also serving as CEO of polymer additives supplier Addivant Corp.

Richmond’s Gottwald family, who have long held leadership within the company, have been the largest shareholder group of the company, owning 22% of Tredegar’s common stock as of 2018. Last year, the company reported approximately $1 billion in revenue.

In his role as CEO, Steitz oversees the company’s 3,200 employees, including those working in operations as well as the company’s manufacturing plants in North America, South America, Europe and Asia. Tredegar manufactures plastic films used for packaging and personal care products. In March, Tredegar subsidiary Bright View Technologies, which makes aluminum extrusions for building, construction and automobiles, pivoted to produce face shields during the pandemic.

Steitz has also served as chief operating officer of chemical company Albemarle Corp. He currently serves on the board of Innophos Holdings Inc., a phosphate product producer.

JOHN STREET

PRESIDENT, ETHYL CORP., RICHMOND

Street has been with NewMarket Corp. companies Ethyl Corp. and Afton Chemical Corp. for nearly 45 years. He joined petroleum additives company Ethyl Corp. in 1975 after completing his bachelor’s degree from Mississippi State University. He eventually became Ethyl’s vice president of health, safety and environment before briefly serving in the same role at Afton Chemical Corp. In 2010, he rejoined Ethyl Corp. as its president.

In 2004, Ethyl Corp. became part of NewMarket Corp., parent company of Ethyl and Afton Chemical Corp. The company manufactures tetraethyllead, an additive used in making leaded gasoline. Last year, Ethyl Corp. reported approximately $1.5 billion in revenue. Ethyl Corp. also spun off Chesterfield County-based plastic films and aluminum extrusions manufacturer Tredegar Corp. in the late 1980s. Last year, NewMarket reported $2.1 billion in sales.

Ethyl Corp. is headquartered in Richmond but has a blending and distribution facility in Houston.

PAUL B. TOMS JR.

CHAIRMAN AND CEO, HOOKER FURNITURE CO., MARTINSVILLE

Toms serves as chairman and CEO of the Martinsville-based furniture manufacturing company his grandfather, Clyde Hooker Sr., founded in 1924. In June, Toms announced his Jan. 31, 2021, retirement after 20 years at the helm of Hooker Furniture Co. Following his retirement, he will remain chairman of the board, and Jeremy Hoff, president of Hooker’s legacy brands, will take his place as CEO.

Toms joined the company in 1983. Under his leadership, Hooker has grown from $50 million in the 1980s to $611 million in sales last year.

In 2018, Toms was inducted into the American Home Furnishings Hall of Fame, which cited the company’s expansions and acquisitions. Hooker in 2016 acquired Home Meridian International, making Hooker one of the nation’s top five furniture companies and placing it on the NASDAQ Global Select list.

Outside of work, Toms is involved with the High Point Market Authority, the Home Furnishings Council, the American Home Furnishings Alliance and the International Woodworking Fair. Locally, he supports the Boys & Girls Club of the Blue Ridge, the Martinsville-Henry County Chamber of Commerce and the Harvest Foundation.

GREGORY H. TREPP

PRESIDENT AND CEO, HAMILTON BEACH BRANDS HOLDING CO., GLEN ALLEN

Trepp joined the appliance manufacturing company in 1996 and has served as president and CEO since 2010. He previously worked as Hamilton Beach’s vice president of global operations.

Hamilton Beach Brands has produced appliances such as mixers, blenders and coffee makers since 2010. The company became publicly traded in 2017 and is listed on the New York Stock Exchange.

The Glen Allen-based company includes two business segments: Hamilton Beach Brands Inc., a designer, marketer and distributor of household and commercial appliances, and The Kitchen Collection LLC, a chain of specialty housewares stores. The two businesses used to operate as subsidiaries of Cleveland-based NACCO Industries Inc., which now focuses on coal mining.

Hamilton Beach Brands appliances are top sellers at retail stores, with the company reporting $612.8 million in revenue last year. It employs approximately 1,600 people, with more than 250 workers at its headquarters in Glen Allen’s Innsbrook Corporate Center.

Trepp earned his bachelor’s degree from the University of Richmond and his MBA from the University of Connecticut. Philanthropically, he supports the Anna Julia Cooper Episcopal School in Richmond through scholarships.

JO VANHOREN

PRESIDENT AND CEO, ALFA LAVAL INC., RICHMOND

Vanhoren joined 130-year-old Alfa Laval AB in 1991 after studying engineering in Belgium, his home country, and working in various capacities in the Netherlands, Spain and Italy. He became president and CEO of the company’s North American operations in 2018.

Based in Sweden, Alfa Laval produces air-heat exchangers, separators, pumps and valves for the energy, marine and food sectors. The company employs 1,700 people in the U.S. across 34 locations, including its Northern American headquarters in Henrico County, where it added a heat exchanger production line in 2019, bringing 90% of the product’s manufacturing to the United States. The expansion was part of a $50 million nationwide overhaul in three cities, including facilities in Oklahoma and Indiana.

During the coronavirus pandemic, Alfa Laval supplied separators to pharmaceutical companies and pumps to hand sanitizer manufacturers. Currently, the company is focused on renewable energy, streamlined distribution and digitalization, Vanhoren said in a recent interview.

BRETT A. VASSEY

PRESIDENT AND CEO, VIRGINIA MANUFACTURERS ASSOCIATION, RICHMOND

As head of the Virginia Manufacturers Association since 2002, Vassey represents about 6,000 companies employing more than 200,000 people. The association serves as an educational and advocacy organization for the manufacturing industry, recently grappling with issues such as the governor’s new coronavirus workplace safety requirements and clean energy bills passed by the General Assembly. Aside from his duties with the VMA, Vassey is also president and CEO of the association’s Virginia Craft Brewers Guild affiliate, formed in 2010.

A graduate of the University of Kansas and Virginia Tech, where he received a master’s of public administration and policy degree, Vassey previously worked for the Virginia Department of Business Assistance and the Virginia Economic Development Partnership. He is also chairman of the Consumer Energy Alliance board of directors, a position he’s held since 2018.

In February, he wrote an op-ed for the Richmond Times-Dispatch advocating public-private partnerships to aid curbside recycling programs in Virginia, aiming for all plastic packaging to be reused, recycled or recoverable by 2040.

NEIL D. WILKIN JR.

CHAIRMAN, PRESIDENT AND CEO, OPTICAL CABLE CORP., ROANOKE

Wilkin has led Optical Cable since 2003, two years after joining the company as its chief financial officer. A former lawyer who worked at McGuireWoods and Kirkland & Ellis with a focus on mergers and acquisition, he is a three-degree holder from the University of Virginia, including his bachelor’s, MBA and law degrees. Wilkin serves on the board of Carilion Clinic and chairs the Virginia Western Community College Educational Foundation board.

He previously served on the Virginia Economic Development Partnership board and has held leadership positions in other regional organizations, including the Blue Ridge Mountains Council of the Boy Scouts of America and the Roanoke-Blacksburg Technology Council. Founded in 1983, Optical Cable manufactures and sells fiber optic cables to clients including the U.S. departments of Defense and Commerce and the Virginia state government. It employs more than 250 people in the Roanoke region.

Like many companies, Optical saw a decrease in consolidated net sales in the spring, a decline of 22.3% in the second quarter compared with the same quarter in 2019, and the company received a $5 million loan through the Paycheck Protection Program.

JAMES XU

CHAIRMAN, AVAIL VAPOR LLC, BLACKBRIAR REGULATORY SERVICES LLC AND BLACKSHIP TECHNOLOGIES LLC,
CHESTERFIELD COUNTY

Xu co-founded e-cigarette liquid manufacturer and cannabidiol (CBD) products retailer Avail Vapor in 2013 and previously served as the company’s CEO. Avail, which started with just one retail location in Richmond, has grown to more than 99 stores in 11 states, with 30 locations in Virginia. It employs approximately 200 people through its stores and its Chesterfield County headquarters and manufacturing facility.

In January, Avail Vapor divided its operations into three separate businesses: Avail Vapor LLC (vapor retailer), Blackbriar Regulatory Services LLC (contract manufacturing, FDA compliance consulting) and Blackship Technologies LLC (research and development). Xu now serves as chairman for each of the three entities.

The subsidiaries manufacture and retail e-liquid and CBD products such as e-liquid vapors, vaping devices and accessories. In June 2019, the company launched its own line of CBD products under brand name Leafana Wellness.

Before he founded Avail Vapor, Xu and his sister, Ting, co-founded Evergreen Enterprises, which has become one of the largest home and gift wholesalers in the U.S. Xu has also been a member of the Committee on International Trade for the Virginia Economic Development Partnership.

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Nonprofits | Philanthropy

SHERRIE ARMSTRONG

PRESIDENT AND CEO, COMMUNITY FOUNDATION FOR A GREATER RICHMOND, RICHMOND

Founded in 1968, the Community Foundation for a greater Richmond is a venerable force for regional philanthropy, managing 1,200 charitable funds with more than $1 billion in assets.

Consequently, when the coronavirus pandemic hit, the Community Foundation was one of the first organizations to respond to the economic toll COVID-19 took on local families and nonprofits. In early April, the foundation launched the Central Virginia COVID-19 Response Fund.

“Whatever it is going to take to help save lives and meet the needs in this health crisis right now is really kind of the first priority,” Armstrong told WWBT NBC 12. As of mid-July, the foundation awarded nearly $3.8 million to 105 organizations, including several local food pantries, health care and housing charities.

Armstrong, who holds a bachelor’s degree in public relations from West Virginia University, has led the Community Foundation for five years, overseeing a staff of 43. She has a long history in the nonprofit sector, including working as executive vice president of investor relations at United Way Worldwide and serving as CEO for the United Way of Greater Richmond and Petersburg for 11 years.

TRACEY D. BROWN

CEO, AMERICAN DIABETES ASSOCIATION, ARLINGTON

“Just think passion on steroids.” That’s how a former colleague described the head of the American Diabetes Association, and Brown herself echoes that sentiment. “This position here at the ADA is that final piece that has brought purpose, passion and position together,” she told AARP magazine in a 2019 interview.

For Brown, diabetes is personal. Sixteen years ago, when pregnant with her daughter, she was diagnosed with Type 2 diabetes, and she is the association’s first CEO to have the disease. She oversees an organization with 490 employees and a budget of $156.9 million.

Brown calls diabetes “one of the biggest health epidemics of our time,” pointing out that more than 30 million Americans have some version of it, sometimes because of lack of access to healthy food and affordable medications.

Brown previously was senior vice president of operations and chief experience officer at Sam’s Club, before joining ADA in 2018. She also led the worldwide consumer marketing department for Advanced Micro Devices and was CEO and managing director of marketing agency RAPP Dallas.

MATTHEW CONNELLY

CEO, GOOD360, ALEXANDRIA

Connelly, who started out as a UPS driver, has seen his delivery career take on new meaning in the last year. The charity he runs, Good360, brings together philanthropy and logistics, stepping in to transport donated goods to where they need to be during times of disaster.

That’s been an especially tricky challenge during the pandemic. But Good360 helps get excess inventory from companies put to good use. It’s also seen new kinds of donations amid COVID-19. For instance, Victoria’s Secret gave 50,000 face masks, which went to nonprofits helping women in need. And Nike partnered with Good360 to deliver 30,000 pairs of its Air Zoom Pulses to frontline medical workers in Chicago, New York, Los Angeles, Memphis and to Veterans Health Administration facilities nationwide.

Through a network of more than 80,000 nonprofits, Good360 distributes more than $9 billion in donated goods globally.

A Boston native, Connelly joined Good360 as a board member in 2011, while serving as vice president of network operations at UPS, where he was responsible for the company’s 80 largest customers and more than $1 billion in annual surface transportation spending.

JACK DYER ‘J.D.’CROUCH II

PRESIDENT AND CEO, UNITED SERVICE ORGANIZATIONS, ARLINGTON

With a career spanning the public, private and nonprofit sectors, Crouch is in his seventh year as president and CEO of United Service Organizations, known as the USO.

The nonprofit, founded in 1941, is known for its work entertaining and uplifting the morale of the U.S. armed forces. Its tours transport famous entertainers around the world to perform for service members and also provides support programs for military spouses. The USO reported about $250 million in revenue, gains and other support in 2019.

Crouch can leverage connections gained from a variety of unique work experiences. He volunteered as a reserve deputy sheriff in Missouri, taught defense and strategic studies at Missouri State University, served as U.S. ambassador to Romania and advised President George W. Bush on national security.

His résumé also includes stints in technology. Back when PDAs had yet to be crushed by smartphones, Crouch co-founded PalmGear.com, which sold Palm operating system software. Before starting with the USO in 2014, he was CEO of QinetiQ North America, which supplies robots, maritime systems and other technology and research for federal defense and security agencies as well as commercial clients.

DEBORAH M. DiCROCE

PRESIDENT AND CEO, HAMPTON ROADS COMMUNITY FOUNDATION, NORFOLK

In an update on the foundation’s website this spring, DiCroce said her organization was “in the muck of it” with COVID-19 and would be focusing on helping community members hit hard by the virus. Her board quickly approved $500,000 in grants for nonprofits on the pandemic front line.

A graduate of Old Dominion University and William & Mary, DiCroce comes from a background in higher education and has served as president of both Tidewater Community College in Norfolk and Piedmont Virginia Community College in Charlottesville. She joined the foundation in 2013. The Hampton Roads native told the Richmond Times-Dispatch in 2018 that she viewed the change “as an opportunity to give back personally and make a difference in this part of the world I call home.” Her organization is now the largest provider of grants and scholarships in the region.

DiCroce is active in many local and regional organizations, including Virginia Beach Vision and the Virginia Early Childhood Foundation. She is vice rector of the board of visitors at Norfolk State University.

JOHN E. DOOLEY

CEO, VIRGINIA TECH FOUNDATION, BLACKSBURG

Virginia Tech’s nonprofit foundation is charged with the management of the university’s financial assets and debts, and with Virginia Tech surpassing $1 billion in endowment funds a few years ago, that’s no small job. As the foundation’s CEO since 2012, Dooley oversees those funds and is responsible for a real estate portfolio that includes properties as far away as Switzerland. Closer to home, the variety of properties he manages range from the innovational to the recreational and include the Corporate Research Center in Blacksburg, the Virginia Tech Research Center-Arlington, Tech’s Reynolds Homestead outreach campus in Patrick County, The Hotel Roanoke & Conference Center, Curio Collection by Hilton, and the Pete Dye River (Golf) Course in Radford. Dooley also is tasked with being the liaison between Virginia Tech’s academic world and its business partners.

Dooley, who plans to retire in spring 2021 after nearly 40 years at Virginia Tech, previously served as the university’s president for outreach and international affairs. He has also held leadership roles with the Virginia Cooperative Extension and the Virginia 4-H Foundation. He currently serves on the GO Virginia Region 2 Council and the Virginia Chamber of Commerce board’s executive committee.

BRIAN A. GALLAGHER

PRESIDENT AND CEO, UNITED WAY WORLDWIDE, ALEXANDRIA

Gallagher has spent the last four decades in a career of service, working for the United Way since 1981.

Born in Chicago and raised in Indiana, Gallagher became president and CEO of the United Way of America in 2002, taking on his present role in 2009 after the organization merged with United Way International, creating the largest privately funded nonprofit in the world. United Way Worldwide raises $4.8 billion annually to support families in need across more than 1,800 independent United Way chapters worldwide.

Under Gallagher’s leadership, the United Way, which serves 95% of U.S. communities, has improved its financial reporting standards and increased its use of technology.

The COVID-19 pandemic presented new needs and new challenges for United Way Worldwide, which expanded its home delivery program, working with DoorDash to make more than 20,000 deliveries of food and supplies by late May.

Gallagher is a graduate of Ball State University, where he serves on the board of trustees. He also is a member of the boards of America’s Promise Alliance and Leadership 18. During Barack Obama’s presidency, he was tapped for the President’s Advisory Council on Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships.

ANNE LYNAM GODDARD

PRESIDENT AND CEO, CHILDFUND INTERNATIONAL, RICHMOND

Shortly after earning her bachelor’s degree from Assumption College in Worcester, Massachusetts, Goddard joined the Peace Corps, serving in Kenya for two years. Before joining ChildFund International (then called Christian Children’s Fund) in 2007, she worked for 20 years with CARE, an Atlanta-based nonprofit championing the rights of women and girls.

As CEO of ChildFund International (one of the largest nonprofits in Virginia, with cumulative gross receipts of $207 million), Goddard directs the organization’s efforts to promote global child protection strategies in 24 countries. She is on the board of ChildFund Alliance, a network of 11 child-focused development organizations around the world. Goddard has also served on the boards of directors for Washington, D.C., nonprofit organizations, including the U.S. Global Leadership Coalition, InterAction and the Basic Education Coalition.

In the Richmond area, she has served on the board of directors for the Richmond Forum and on the executive advisory committee for the University of Richmond’s Robins School of Business. In 2009, she received an honorary doctorate from her alma mater and also holds a master’s degree in public health from the University of North Carolina.

TED HART

PRESIDENT AND CEO, CHARITIES AID FOUNDATION OF AMERICA (CAF AMERICA), ALEXANDRIA

Since Hart took the reins at the global charity in 2012, it has grown 639%. With his expertise in risk management and the regulatory frameworks that govern domestic and international philanthropy, CAF America now sees more than $450 million in annual contributions. This year The Nonprofit Times named CAF America one of the Top 50 nonprofit places to work in the United States.

Because American donors cannot get tax breaks for donating to foreign nonprofits, CAF America accepts funds from U.S. donors who make recommendations on how CAF can support foreign charities. It received $294 million in contributions last year.

Hart maintains a busy second career as a motivational speaker and author, including “People to People Fundraising,” co-authored with James M Greenfield and Sheeraz D. Haji. He also hosts a radio show/podcast called “Nonprofit Coach,” interviewing experts from the nonprofit sector.

Hart is fond of inspirational quotes and has been known to cite everyone from Samuel Johnson to Maximus from the movie “Gladiator.”

JANE HENDERSON

PRESIDENT AND CEO, VIRGINIA COMMUNITY CAPITAL, RICHMOND

Virginia Community Capital likes to say it isn’t in the vision business. But without capital, visions don’t become reality and that’s where Henderson and VCC come in. Under her leadership, VCC has leveraged a $15 million state investment into close to $800 million in public and private investments, mainly focused on community development and revitalization and affordable housing. It has created almost 8,000 jobs and financed close to 1,000 projects, including adding nearly 10,000 affordable housing units. Typical investments have included providing the financing for the construction of the William Byrd Senior Apartments in Richmond and the funding to convert a Lynchburg school into apartments for the low-income and disabled.

A Gettysburg College and St. Joseph’s University graduate, Henderson was director of community development at Wachovia and served as chair of the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond’s advisory board for eight years.

LT. GEN. JAMES B. LASTER (USMC, RET.)

PRESIDENT AND CEO, MARINE TOYS FOR TOTS FOUNDATION, QUANTICO

With $279 million in private donations last year, the Marine Toys for Tots Foundation ranks No. 55 on the Forbes list of the 100 Largest U.S. Charities. Founded in 1947, it has become a staple of holiday giving across the country. During the 2019 Christmas season, it put 18.6 million toys into the hands of 7.3 million children.

Wrapping up the 2019 holiday season included a leadership transition, with Laster taking over from his predecessor of 12 years, Lt. Gen. Henry P. Osman.

Because of the COVID-19 pandemic, Toys for Tots hit the ground running this spring to help children stuck at home during the pandemic, partnering with Good360 to provide 2 million toys, books and games to low-income children.

A Dallas native, Laster retired from the Marines in 2017 after a 38-year career during which he served a stint as chief of war plans for the Joint Chiefs of Staff.

He also performed humanitarian operations in Kenya, was deputy chief of staff for ISAF Joint Command in Afghanistan, and served as chief of staff for the U.S. Special Operations Command.

SISTER DONNA MARKHAM

PRESIDENT, CATHOLIC CHARITIES USA, ALEXANDRIA

In June, Markham marked her fifth anniversary with Catholic Charities USA. She is the first woman to lead the charity in its 110-year history.

An Adrian Dominican sister with a doctorate in clinical psychology, she has served in leadership positions in behavioral health care both in Canada and the United States.

Her background in mental health, service and leadership were cited as key strengths for the organization, which is vast. Commonweal magazine, an independent journal for Catholics, notes, “Outside of the federal government, Catholic Charities is the largest social-safety-net provider in the country.”

Catholic Charities’ programs provide affordable housing assistance, food and nutrition aid and refugee and disaster services. Markham citied chronic homelessness as a priority in November, with Catholic Charities providing housing services to more than 400,000 people.

Markham has used her platform to weigh in on current events such as the Supreme Court’s recent decision on the DACA program and has sought increased funding from Congress for housing programs for the needy.

JENNIFER MORRIS

Morris. Photo by Katie Bryden/Conservation International

CEO, THE NATURE CONSERVANCY, ARLINGTON

Morris has taken the helm of The Nature Conservancy (TNC) at a time when climate change and environmental concerns have become a dominant theme of public policy debate, boardroom strategy and social media discussion.

Morris, who lives in Washington, D.C., became CEO of the Arlington-based nonprofit in May, after working more than 20 years at Conservation International, where she served as COO and became president in 2017.

A graduate of Emory University, Morris earned her master’s degree from Columbia University’s School of International and Public Affairs.

In her new role, she oversees an organization that works in 79 countries and territories to balance nature and people, conserve land and water, and bring sustainable practices to cities.

Morris previously served as president of Conservation International and a business development consultant with Women’s World Banking. She also was a member of the United Nations’ SEED Initiative and the Conservation Finance Alliance boards.

TIM ROSE

CEO, UNIVERSITY OF VIRGINIA FOUNDATION, CHARLOTTESVILLE

Rose heads a real estate organization dedicated to providing land for U.Va.’s expansion. He is the steward of about 5,200 acres and associated properties, including the posh Boar’s Head Resort and its Birdwood Golf Course in Charlottesville.

This year, the foundation showed its commitment to its home region by putting 1,150 acres of land near Thomas Jefferson’s iconic Monticello estate under a conservation easement. Without it, as many as 74 dwellings could have been built on the site. “We did not want to do anything that would be disruptive to the character of that community,” Rose told The Daily Progress.

Rose has made his career in academia and is a former assistant vice president for administration at U.Va., having previously worked at both Ohio’s Miami University and James Madison University.

He has been involved in a long list of regional institutions, including the Albemarle County Police Foundation, the Charlottesville Community Land Trust, the Thomas Jefferson Planning District Sustainability Council and the Charlottesville Regional Chamber of Commerce. He holds a doctorate from U.Va.

M. SANJAYAN

CEO, CONSERVATION INTERNATIONAL, ARLINGTON

Sanjayan is a familiar face to many TV watchers. The global conservation scientist has become a go-to expert for shows such as the “CBS Evening News” and has hosted more than a dozen documentaries for PBS, the BBC and National Geographic.

In 2013, a report he did on elephant poaching was nominated for an Emmy. He often is referred to as just Sanjayan, the use of one name being common among the Tamil people of Sri Lanka, where he was born.

Sanjayan’s scientific work has appeared in respected journals such as Science and Nature. The doctor of ecology and evolutionary biology also is a past member of National Geographic Society’s Explorers Council, which provides the Society with expert advice, and he was a 2010 Catto Fellow at the nonpartisan Aspen Institute, tasked with finding collaborative ways to ensure the health of the environment.

In a June 2 message on Conservation International’s website, Sanjayan expressed his anger and despair over “systemic racism” in the United States. Because Conservation International’s mission is to safeguard nature for the well-being of humanity, he announced that Conservation International would be standing with those calling for equality and justice.

LARRY SELZER

PRESIDENT AND CEO, THE CONSERVATION FUND, ARLINGTON

The Conservation Fund is this country’s only environmental group that is dedicated to twin causes some might consider antithetical: conservation and economic development.

“Conservation is everybody’s business,” says Selzer, the fund’s CEO, characterizing the choice between the environment and the economy as a false one. During a 2016 TEDx talk, he said, “The future of the environmental movement must be based on meeting the needs of people as well as the needs of nature. … America needs jobs and environmental protection.”

Selzer became the head of The Conservation Fund almost 20 years ago and oversees a staff of about 140. The nonprofit works with government, businesses and other environmental groups to protect natural resources in all 50 states. To date, the fund, founded in 1985, has protected more than 8 million acres of land.

Selzer started as a researcher of marine mammals and seabirds at the Manomet Center for Conservation Science and was chair of the Outdoor Foundation and the Sustainable Forestry Initiative boards. He also has an MBA from the University of Virginia Darden School of Business.

TRAVIS STATON

Staton

PRESIDENT AND CEO, UNITED WAY OF SOUTHWEST VIRGINIA, ABINGDON

Two years ago, Charity Navigator ranked United Way of Southwest Virginia among the 10 best United Way chapters out of more than 1,200 nationwide. Staton had a lot to do with that.

Access to health care for the people of Southwest Virginia has been a priority for Staton. Another of his interests has been job training.

In 2018, he told The Roanoke Times that he “was taken aback at the gap between our public and private sectors,” which led to students training for nonexistent jobs while real jobs went unfilled due to a lack of qualified applicants. His response was to create a program to provide career planning for all 29,000 of the region’s sixth- through 12th-graders. Virginia Business magazine named him one of its 100 people to meet in 2020.

EDUCATION: East Tennessee State University (B.S.)

BEST ADVICE: Be great at what you do. The quality of your work and those that you impact in the long run is really what matters.

HOBBY/PASSION: I love the outdoors and enjoy fly fishing for trout.

STACEY D. STEWART

PRESIDENT AND CEO, MARCH OF DIMES INC., ARLINGTON

The first Black person and second woman to lead the 82-year-old March of Dimes, Stewart previously served as the U.S. president of United Way Worldwide, as well as Fannie Mae’s chief diversity officer and senior vice president for its Office of Community and Charitable Giving. She also was president and CEO of the Fannie Mae Foundation, providing support for people seeking affordable housing.

She’s an Atlanta native and holds degrees in economics and finance from the University of Michigan and Georgetown University. Before joining the nonprofit world, Stewart was a vice president at former investment banking firm Pryor, McClendon, Counts & Co. and a senior associate at Merrill Lynch.

Since taking the helm at March of Dimes in 2017, Stewart has focused on the issues of infant deaths and maternal mortality rates, noting in a May interview with Authority Magazine that the number of pregnancy-related deaths among Black and brown women who are 30 or older is approximately four or five times that of white women. She also launched a COVID-19 Vaccine and Support Fund this spring to support research and education.

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Arts | Entertainment | Sports

TONY BENNETT

MEN’S BASKETBALL HEAD COACH, UNIVERSITY OF VIRGINIA, CHARLOTTESVILLE

In 2019 Bennett achieved what no team had never done before — coaching his team to become NCAA men’s basketball champions in his 10th year with the program, a year after the Cavaliers fell during the first round of the tournament. Cementing his reputation as a well-liked and generous coach, Bennett refused a raise when signing a new contract after the championship and donated $500,000 to a career development program for current and former players. In 2019, he was named one of the World’s 50 Greatest Leaders in Fortune magazine, and he was chosen NCAA Division 1 Coach of the Year three times, including twice while at U.Va.

A Wisconsin native, Bennett played basketball for his father, Dick Bennett, who coached the Phoenix at the University of Wisconsin-Green Bay, and went on to play three seasons for the Charlotte Hornets. Before taking the helm at Virginia in 2009, Bennett was head coach at Washington State. The NCAA basketball season was cut short this spring due to the coronavirus, so the Cavaliers remain the national champions into 2020, although in a way few would have predicted.

DENNIS BICKMEIER

Bickmeier. Photo Courtesy Richmond Raceway

PRESIDENT, RICHMOND RACEWAY, RICHMOND

Bickmeier became president of Richmond Raceway in 2011, and although NASCAR is still his main business, he also launched Virginia Credit Union LIVE!, a 6,000-seat concert space, part of a $30 million renovation of the raceway.

He previously was vice president of consumer sales and marketing at Michigan International Speedway and worked with the Anaheim Angels baseball team, the National Hockey League’s Mighty Ducks of Anaheim and the Los Angeles Rams. Bickmeier also taught communications and public relations at the University of San Francisco’s Sports Management Program, and in Richmond, he started the charity Richmond Raceway Cares, providing $25,000 in funds for local nonprofit organizations.

An Ohio native, he graduated from Ohio University and interned with the Los Angeles Dodgers. In 2020, with high school graduations upended by the coronavirus, the raceway invited Henrico County high school seniors to take “victory laps” on the racetrack to celebrate their achievements.

JUSTIN FUENTE

HEAD FOOTBALL COACH, VIRGINIA TECH, BLACKSBURG

Oklahoma native Fuente stepped into big shoes in Blacksburg in 2016, when he succeeded legendary Coach Frank Beamer, who retired after nearly 30 years as the Hokies’ head coach. He had previously been the head football coach at the University of Memphis. However, the former Murray State quarterback and Walter Payton Award finalist has proved himself worthy, bringing the team to three consecutive bowl game wins for the first time in the program’s history and being named 2016 ACC Coach of the Year. In 2017, he and Tech agreed to a contract extension through 2023.

MOST RECENT BOOK READ: “When Pride Still Mattered: A Life of Vince Lombardi,” by David Maraniss

FIRST JOB: Worked as a security guard in Tulsa

PERSON I ADMIRE: My wife, Jenny, and all coaches’ wives. They make so many sacrifices for our families and really take care of everything at home so we can do what we love — coaching football and helping young people grow.

BEVERAGE OF CHOICE: Diet Mountain Dew

ONE THING YOU’D CHANGE ABOUT VIRGINIA: My family loves living in Blacksburg. I’d make it mandatory that you should visit Virginia Tech on a fall football Saturday!

TONY JOHNSON

VICE PRESIDENT AND GENERAL MANAGER, KINGS DOMINION/CEDAR FAIR ENTERTAINMENT CO., DOSWELL

Johnson, a veteran of Cedar Fair, which owns 11 amusement parks in the U.S. and Canada, took the reins in 2018 at Kings Dominion, where he had his first theme park job in 1974 as a tower guard for the Lion Country Safari. A graduate of the University of North Carolina and the Rappahannock Criminal Justice Academy, Johnson also held security and operations leadership roles at Carowinds in Charlotte, North Carolina, and California’s Great America in Santa Clara, as well as at Cedar Fair’s corporate offices. He serves on the global security committee of the International Association of Amusement Parks and Attractions. This year has been especially challenging for Kings Dominion, which did not open for the first time in 45 years due to the pandemic.

PERSON I ADMIRE: My mom. She reared five children while working the family farm, but always had time for us. She taught us the value of hard work, self-sufficiency and education among many other life skills.

NEW LIFE EXPERIENCE RECENTLY: I’m trying to do a better job of balancing work and family life. I have six grandchildren and my goal is to be the best granddaddy ever. The key is getting them out of the house and away from their mobile devices and the TV.

KEVIN LEMBKE

PRESIDENT, BUSCH GARDENS WILLIAMSBURG AND WATER COUNTRY USA, WILLIAMSBURG

Lembke left Busch Gardens briefly in 2019 to pursue other career opportunities, but he was back last November as president of Busch Gardens Williamsburg and Water Country USA, both owned by SeaWorld Entertainment Inc.

Of course, 2020 didn’t wind up as anyone would have expected, particularly for Virginia’s major amusement parks, which had not reopened as of late July. Lembke was a vocal critic of the state government‘s 1,000-person mandated attendance limit for theme parks, saying it wasn’t financially feasible. Busch Gardens reopened in August on a very limited basis for its Coasters and Craft Brews event series.

Before joining Busch Gardens Williamsburg as president in 2018, Lembke was vice president of merchandise and culinary at Busch Gardens Tampa Bay and vice president of merchandise at the Williamsburg park. He holds a bachelor’s degree from the University at Buffalo and has worked for SeaWorld Entertainment in various capacities since 2000. Lembke also serves on the board of directors for the Williamsburg Tourism Council, the Greater Williamsburg Chamber and Tourism Alliance and the Historic Triangle Collaborative and has coached youth hockey.

ARVIND M. MANOCHA

Manocha

PRESIDENT AND CEO, WOLF TRAP FOUNDATION FOR THE PERFORMING ARTS, VIENNA

A lifelong music devotee, Manocha joined Wolf Trap as its leader in 2013, overseeing the year-round performing arts program, which extends from pop bands to opera, at Wolf Trap National Park for the Performing Arts. Frequent performers at the park’s distinctive, yellow pine-ceilinged Filene Center have included Ringo Starr, Emmylou Harris and Elvis Costello.

Before moving east, Manocha was chief operating officer of the Los Angeles Philharmonic Association and worked at the Hollywood Bowl. He currently serves on the board of the Northern Virginia Chamber of Commerce and as a trustee of Levine Music, a music education center in the Washington, D.C., region. A native of Ohio, Manocha has launched digital streaming of Wolf Trap Opera productions and expanded Wolf Trap’s early childhood arts education model.

EDUCATION: Cornell University (B.A.) and University of Cambridge (M.A.)

NEW LIFE EXPERIENCE RECENTLY: Like so many during this pandemic, we’ve recently adopted our first pet, a cat.

FIRST JOB: Sales clerk in a bookstore during
high school

BEST ADVICE: If you’re under 30 and have the opportunity to live abroad for any length of time — for any reason at all — do it.

ERIK H. NEIL

DIRECTOR AND PRESIDENT, CHRYSLER MUSEUM OF ART, NORFOLK

Neil joined the Chrysler Museum in 2014, leading it into the digital age, including launching its first interactive gallery in 2018. Before arriving in Norfolk, he was director of the Academy Art Museum in Maryland and executive director of the Heckscher Museum in New York. He has curated exhibits and worked with artists including Carrie Mae Weems and James Turrell, and published works on architecture, photography and contemporary art. Neil also serves on the VisitNorfolk Board of Directors and is active in the Society of Architectural Historians and the Association of Art Museum Directors.

EDUCATION: Princeton University (B.A.) and Harvard University (M.A., Ph.D.)

HOBBY/PASSION: I love to go to the movies. We have a wonderful place in Norfolk called the Naro with independent films and documentaries that we visit frequently.

MOST RECENT BOOK READ: “The Beautiful Things That Heaven Bears,” by Dinaw Mengestu

SOMETHING I WOULD NEVER DO AGAIN:
Eat jellyfish

WHAT’S ONE THING YOU’D CHANGE ABOUT VIRGINIA? Increase funding for museums and
art education.

ALEX NYERGES

DIRECTOR AND CEO, VIRGINIA MUSEUM OF FINE ARTS, RICHMOND

Nyerges came to VMFA in 2006, having served as director and CEO of the Dayton (Ohio) Art Institute for 14 years. Since arriving in Richmond, Nyerges has overseen a major expansion of the museum and several blockbuster exhibitions, including works by Pablo Picasso and Kehinde Wiley (whose celebrated “Rumors of War” statue was installed on the VMFA’s front yard in 2019), and the Terracotta Army, ancient life-size clay figures from the First Emperor of China’s burial site. A Rochester, New York, native, Nyerges is an affiliate graduate faculty member at Virginia Commonwealth University, a member of the Forum Club in Richmond and the former co-chair of the Mayor’s Tourism Commission, among other civic organizations.

EDUCATION: George Washington University (B.A., M.A.)

NEW LIFE EXPERIENCE RECENTLY: Becoming a grandfather. What a pure joy!

BEVERAGE OF CHOICE: A great bottle of Virginia Meritage (from Michael Shaps Wineworks in Charlottesville)

WHAT’S ONE THING YOU WOULD CHANGE ABOUT VIRGINIA? Grant all African American and Native American Virginians equity, equality and prosperity. They’ve given 400 years of their blood, sweat and tears to make us the great state that we are today.

TODD ‘PARNEY’ PARNELL

CEO, RICHMOND FLYING SQUIRRELS, RICHMOND

Parnell is a recognizable figure at Squirrels baseball games, wearing loud pants and going by the nickname “Parney.” His career started in 1989 as director of sales and marketing for the Phillies farm team in Reading, Pennsylvania, and took him to Altoona, Pennsylvania, and Kannapolis, North Carolina, before he moved to Richmond to oversee the Squirrels in 2010, their inaugural season in Richmond, as vice president and chief operating officer. In July, he was promoted to CEO, replacing Chuck Domino, who retired. In 2019, Parnell was named the Class AA Eastern League Executive of the Year. Over the last decade, Parnell has welcomed more than 400,000 fans in one season, hosted the 2019 Eastern League All-Star Week in 2019, sent the team’s mascot, Nutzy the Squirrel, to hundreds of public events around Richmond and launched charitable initiatives, including “Renovating Richmond’s Recreation,” created to revamp 14 area baseball fields. This year’s season was canceled due to the coronavirus, but Parnell walked the bases a total of 125 times in April, raising money for local COVID-19 relief efforts during an event called “500 Bases of Love.”

LISA SIMS

CEO, VENTURE RICHMOND, RICHMOND

Sims became Venture Richmond’s leader in 2017 after she proved her mettle in an interim role. She also serves as executive director of the Richmond Folk Festival, the largest annual music festival in the state. A Nashville native, Sims was hired in 2006 as director of events and oversaw the 2nd Street Festival, TEDxRVA and the opening of the 2015 UCI World Championship cycling competition, among other signature events. This year, Sims announced that the folk festival would not be held in person this October due to concerns about the coronavirus, although she promised that there would be a virtual version of the festival, which draws hundreds of thousands of music fans to the capital each fall. Before moving to Richmond to work for what is now Richmond Region Tourism, Sims was executive director of the Asheville, North Carolina, Convention and Visitors Bureau and worked for Opryland USA and the Country Music Foundation/Country Music Hall of Fame in Nashville, Tennessee. She volunteers on several boards, including the Massey Cancer Center Advisory Board and the Richmond Region Tourism board of directors.

DAN SNYDER

OWNER, WASHINGTON FOOTBALL TEAM, ASHBURN

Snyder is best known for purchasing the former Washington Redskins from the estate of Jack Kent Cooke in 1999, declaring in 2013 he would “never” change the name of the team, which has been criticized as racist for decades. But under pressure from FedEx and other corporate sponsors, Snyder announced in July that the Redskins name and logo would be retired in 2020. That news was followed by an exclusive report in mid-July from The Washington Post that 15 female former Redskins employees said they were sexually harassed and verbally abused at work by other executives during Snyder’s tenure, although Snyder was not accused of misconduct. Snyder hired a Washington-based law firm to review the organization’s conduct, and several executives were let go days before the report came out. A Maryland native, Snyder is a lifelong entrepreneur. He founded a wallboard advertising company in 1989 with his sister Michele, which became Snyder Communications LP. After going public, the business expanded to $1 billion in annual revenue and 12,000 employees by 2000, when Snyder sold the business for more than $2 billion. Forbes valued the Washington team at $3.4 billion this year, making it the world’s 14th most valuable sports franchise, although its 2019-20 season was a less-than-stellar 3-13.

PHARRELL WILLIAMS

MUSICIAN, PRODUCER AND DEVELOPER, LOS ANGELES/VIRGINIA BEACH

Williams, known for his Grammy-winning career as a pop and hip-hop performer (including 2014’s smash hit “Happy”) and producer and his forays into fashion design and movie production, also has focused his attention on his hometown of Virginia Beach in recent years. Something in the Water, a three-day music and arts festival on the oceanfront, debuted in April 2019 with music superstars Janelle Monáe, Missy Elliott, Migos and Dave Matthews Band, among others. The second festival was scheduled for April 2020 but was canceled due to the coronavirus, although it’s set to return in April 2021. Williams also is part of a group developing the $325 million Atlantic Park surf park and entertainment venue on the former Dome site. In June, he paid a surprise visit to Richmond for Gov. Ralph Northam’s announcement that Juneteenth would become an official state holiday, marking June 19, 1865, the day that the last group of enslaved Americans were told they were free. Among other charitable initiatives, Williams has offered internships to 114 Harlem, New York, high school students and started a foundation that runs after-school programs in Virginia Beach.

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Energy

ROBERT M. ‘BOB’ BLUE

PRESIDENT AND CEO, DOMINION ENERGY INC., RICHMOND

In October, Blue takes over as Dominion’s president and CEO, though he’ll still answer to his predecessor, Thomas Farrell II, who’s taking on the title of executive chair.

Blue joined Dominion in 2005, serving in various leadership roles, including, most recently, as executive vice president and co-chief operating officer. He also served as president of Dominion Energy Virginia, with 2.6 million customer accounts. He has led Dominion’s efforts to build the nation’s largest offshore wind farm 27 miles off the coast of Virginia Beach, as well as Dominion’s investments in solar energy and its partnership with Smithfield Foods to convert methane from hog waste into natural gas. Blue was also president and CEO of Dominion’s power delivery business unit until 2017.

A graduate of the University of Virginia and Yale Law School, Blue holds a master’s degree in business administration from U.Va.’s Darden School of Business. He sits on U.Va.’s board of visitors and is also a trustee for the Virginia Health Care Foundation. From 2002 to 2005, he served as counselor and director of policy for Gov. Mark Warner.

THOMAS F. FARRELL II

Farrell. Portrait courtesy Mark Mitchell

EXECUTIVE CHAIR, DOMINION ENERGY INC., RICHMOND

One of the most prominent business leaders in Virginia, Farrell has led the Fortune 500 power and energy company since 2006 and is also one of the highest-paid executives in his industry, making about $15 million annually. Under his leadership, Dominion, with more than $13 billion in annual revenues, has tripled its philanthropic giving and come close to doubling its earnings per share.

July was an eventful month for the utility, with Farrell announcing he was passing his responsibilities as president and CEO to Robert Blue. Dominion also completed construction on the first offshore wind farm in federal waters, part of an effort to meet a state mandate to generate 100% of Virginia’s electricity from carbon-free sources by 2045. And Dominion walked away from its plans to build the controversial $8 billion Atlantic Coast Pipeline and sold its natural gas transmission and storage assets in a $9.7 billion deal, with Farrell saying Dominion was narrowing its focus to its utilities business.

Earlier this summer, Dominion made $40 million in commitments towards racial equity, including supporting social justice nonprofits and historically black colleges and universities.

Farrell chairs the board of directors for the state-funded GO Virginia economic development initiative. He’s also chairman of the board of directors for Henrico County-based Fortune 500 tobacco manufacturer Altria Group Inc.

ANDRÉS R. GLUSKI

PRESIDENT AND CEO, AES CORP., ARLINGTON

When Gluski took the reins of the Fortune 500 global power company in 2011, 60% of its power generation operations were fueled by coal. But Gluski began an aggressive push toward producing more sustainable and greener energy in the 14 countries AES serves.

Gluski has reduced AES’s coal generating power to 30%, and by 2022, he expects to have halved the company’s carbon footprint from its 2016 levels. Simultaneously, he has increased the company’s credit rating, initiated a quarterly dividend, which has grown at an 8% annual rate, and overseen more than 5,000 megawatts of new power generation, while vastly expanding the company’s use of battery storage capacity, wind and solar energy.

“The basic want-to-do-good DNA of this company made this easier,” Gluski told Forbes magazine in December 2019.

Raised in Venezuela, where he was director general of public finance for the Ministry of Finance, Gluski earned his master’s and doctorate in economics from the University of Virginia. He serves as chairman for the Council of the Americas’ board of directors.

JIM KIBLER

SENIOR VICE PRESIDENT, SOUTHERN COMPANY GAS; PRESIDENT*, VIRGINIA NATURAL GAS INC., VIRGINIA BEACH

Kibler oversees the delivery of natural gas to almost 300,000 customers in southeastern Virginia, a customer base that continues to swell.

Lately, Virginia Natural Gas has been working to gain approval from the State Corporation Commission for its controversial $346 million Header Improvement Project, which would connect pipeline infrastructure in Northern Virginia to Hampton Roads. It has until Dec. 31 to fulfill a raft of SCC requirements. Though it’s been met with opposition from landowners and environmentalists, Virginia Natural Gas says the project will upgrade the state’s natural gas infrastructure and provide a reliable method for meeting the region’s growing energy needs.

The civic-minded Kibler serves on the boards of the Virginia Chamber of Commerce and the Mead Endowment at the University of Virginia. He also sits on the GO Virginia Region 5 Council and is vice rector of the board of visitors at Radford University.

A graduate of the University of Virginia, Kibler holds a law degree, with honors, from the University of Richmond.

*Editor’s Note: Kibler announced his retirement after the Virginia 500 went to press. As of Sept. 4, former Virginia Natural Gas President Robert Duvall will take his place as president.

DIANE LEOPOLD

CHIEF OPERATING OFFICER, DOMINION ENERGY INC., RICHMOND

Leopold landed her first job in the energy industry as a power plant engineer because she was willing to climb 500-foot smokestacks. Her career since has reached even loftier heights.

In October, Leopold will become the company’s sole chief operating officer, responsible for all the company’s operating segments. She previously served as executive vice president and co-COO, overseeing Dominion Energy South Carolina (with 1.1 million customers) and the company’s gas distribution segment. She’s also responsible for its gas transmission and storage division, which is being sold to a Berkshire Hathaway subsidiary by the end of 2020.

A graduate of the University of Sussex in England, she holds a master’s degree in engineering from George Washington University and an MBA from Virginia Commonwealth University. Leopold joined Dominion in 1995, holding a number of executive roles. She is chair of the American Gas Association and serves on the board of trustees at Virginia Union University. She also serves on the boards of Markel Corp. and the GO Virginia Foundation.

And Leopold still isn’t afraid of reaching new heights. She has made more than 450 skydiving jumps, and, a few years ago, even rappelled down a 20-story building in downtown Richmond to raise money for the United Way. “I’ve learned to embrace the journey just as much as the reward,” she says.

KRAIG WESTERBEEK

SENIOR DIRECTOR, SMITHFIELD RENEWABLES, SMITHFIELD FOODS INC., SMITHFIELD

As the point man for the world’s largest pork producer’s ambitious goal to lower its greenhouse gas emissions by 25% by 2025, Westerbeek is tackling the problem of methane gas released by manure at the many hog farms that supply the ham and bacon for which Smithfield is famous. Methane is 25 times more potent a greenhouse gas than carbon dioxide, and it is responsible for as much as 40% of Smithfield’s carbon footprint.

Westerbeek has helped Smithfield engage 80% of its grain supply chain in efficient fertilizer and soil health practices, but perhaps even more crucially, he has been overseeing an aggressive effort to harness the energy of methane now being released into the atmosphere.

He is a leader in Align Renewable Natural Gas, a $500 million joint venture between Smithfield and Dominion Energy to convert methane from Smithfield’s hog farms into saleable natural gas. The enterprise is projected to remove about 105,000 metric tons of methane annually, the equivalent of taking half a million cars off the road.

A North Carolina State University graduate, Westerbeek began working for Smithfield in 1993 as an environmental technician. He was most recently vice president for environment, engineering and support services for Smithfield’s hog production division in North Carolina.

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Virginia 500

Welcome to the inaugural edition of the Virginia 500 — The 2020 Power List. Read more about the power list and how we assembled the Virginia 500.

Below you will find links to each of the 20 categories featuring the state’s top business leaders.

Living Legends
Agriculture
Arts | Entertainment | Sports
Economic Development
Education
Energy
Federal Contractors | Technology | Aerospace
Finance | Insurance | Banking | Financial Planning | Venture Capital | Investments
Government | Politics | Lobbying
Health Care | Biotech | Pharmaceuticals
Hospitality | Tourism
Law
Manufacturing
Media
Nonprofits | Philanthropy
Professional Services | Accounting | Advertising | Consulting | Security
Real Estate | Architecture | Engineering | Construction | Development
Retail | Wholesale | Food | Beverage
Telecommunications
Transportation | Maritime | Ports | Logistics

Telecommunications

TAD DERISO

PRESIDENT AND CEO, MID-ATLANTIC BROADBAND COMMUNITIES CORP., SOUTH BOSTON

Deriso is the proverbial big fish in the small pond of South Boston, where MBC has made significant headway in connecting Southern Virginia to broadband internet service, working with Old Dominion Electric Cooperative and Virginia Tech, among others. Founded in 2004, MBC owns and operates more than 1,900 miles of open-access fiber lines in 31 counties, which has helped promote investment in the region.

Deriso also has partnered with Microsoft Corp., which has launched its TechSpark Virginia initiative in South Boston and will occupy the new SOVA Innovation Hub, set to open this summer. MBC will move its 20-person operation to the new building too, and a new SOVA Tech Hub will be next door, providing space for technology-focused startups by 2021.

A Georgia State University graduate, Deriso has served on the board of the Virginia Chamber of Commerce and previously worked in the rural telecom and electric utility industries across the country. He also is a graduate of the University of Virginia’s Sorensen Institute for Political Leadership Southside Leaders Program.

MATTHEW J. DESCH

CEO, IRIDIUM COMMUNICATIONS INC., MCLEAN

Desch has served as CEO of Iridium and its predecessor, Iridium Holdings LLC, since 2006, after decades of leadership in the telecommunications industry, including at Telcordia Technologies and Nortel Networks Corp. Iridium brought in
$560 million in revenue in 2019.

Desch serves on the president’s National Security Telecommunications Advisory Committee and on the board of Unisys Corp. He is the only person to be named Via Satellite magazine’s Satellite Executive of the Year twice. He also founded the Buckeye Leadership Fellows program at Ohio State and is a pilot for Angel Flight, a group that provides free patient transportation to distant hospitals.

EDUCATION: Ohio State University (B.S.) and University of Chicago (MBA)

WHAT WOULD A COMPETITOR SAY ABOUT YOU? “Nice guy. Just wish he’d change careers.”

FIRST JOB: Golf caddy at Dayton (Ohio) Country Club

FAVORITE SPORTS TEAM: THE Ohio State University Buckeyes

MOST RECENT BOOK READ: “Astrophysics for People in a Hurry,” by Neil DeGrasse Tyson

CHRISTOPHER E. FRENCH

PRESIDENT AND CEO, SHENANDOAH TELECOMMUNICATIONS CO. (SHENTEL), EDINBURG

Broadband hasn’t come easy to some parts of Virginia. Shentel, founded in 1902, has been one of the companies tackling those challenges.

French, who’s been on Shentel’s board of directors for almost 25 years, was named president and CEO in 1988. He leads one of a handful of publicly traded companies that call the Shenandoah Valley their home.

Shentel provides broadband and telecom services through wireless, cable and fiber optic networks,and is a Sprint affiliate in Virginia, West Virginia, Pennsylvania, Maryland, Kentucky and Ohio.

Shentel serves 1.13 million wireless customers, including prepaid, and has attributed slight revenue growth in 2019 to its broadband growth, which it said offset a decline from wireless. The company also launched residential fiber optic service in Harrisonburg with its new Glo Fiber and also expanded into eastern Kentucky with the acquisition of Big Sandy Broadband.

French, who has a bachelor’s degree and MBA from the University of Virginia, has been president of the Virginia Telecommunications Industry Association and was appointed to the USTelecom Association board in January 2018.

J.D. MYERS II

SENIOR VICE PRESIDENT AND REGION MANAGER OF VIRGINIA OPERATIONS, COX COMMUNICATIONS INC., CHESAPEAKE

Myers joined Cox Communications’ Virginia and North Carolina operations in 2018, overseeing more than 2,400 Virginia-based employees for the cable company, which employs 55,000 people worldwide. He also served as Cox’s market leader in Northern Virginia and as vice president of Cox Business. A former Army officer who grew up in a military family, Myers is a prominent civic figure in Hampton Roads, as a board member for the Hampton Roads Chamber of Commerce, the GO Virginia Region 5 Council and the Children’s Hospital of the King’s Daughters’ mental health campaign cabinet.

EDUCATION: American University (B.A., dual master’s degrees) and Regis University (associate degree)

FIRST JOB: Rustler Steak House, where I was selected to go to chef school as a teenager. And I can cook a mean steak!

BEVERAGE OF CHOICE: Muscle Milk. I don’t go anywhere without it.

WHAT’S ONE THING YOU’D CHANGE ABOUT VIRGINIA? I’d change how we approach our past to pave a better way for the future. No, the past of our commonwealth isn’t pretty but we can’t change it. What we can do is learn from the past to change our future. I’d say the time is right. The appetite is here. Where do we start? How about taking a look at C-suites across Virginia? Are they representative of our beautifully, richly diverse commonwealth? I’d suggest they aren’t. We can start by supporting our minority-owned businesses and lifting them up. But beyond that, let’s prepare the pipeline of tomorrow’s leaders through mentorships and engagement to ensure a representation of our diverse Virginia community in the C-suites of Virginia’s top businesses.

STEPHEN SPENGLER

CEO, INTELSAT CORP., MCLEAN

A veteran of the telecommunications and satellite industries, Spengler oversees the world’s second-largest satellite services provider, which filed for bankruptcy in May to ease its $15 billion debt load and be part of an FCC spectrum-clearing program that could earn the company $4.87 billion.

Spengler joined Intelsat in 2003, serving in roles in sales, marketing and development. He was named CEO in 2015. Prior to his time at Intelsat, he held senior management positions at ViaSat Satellite Networks, Scientific-Atlanta Europe, GTE Spacenet International and GTE Corp.

At Intelsat, Spengler has led development of Intelsat’s next-generation network applications, the $2 billion EpicNG satellite network and the establishment of the C-Band Alliance (CBA), a consortium of satellite operators. In February, Intelsat withdrew from the CBA and, in July, fleet operator SES sued Intelsat for $1.8 billion in damages, claiming that Intelsat reneged on an agreement to evenly split with SES $9.7 billion in spectrum-auctioning proceeds that the CBA was going to collect.

A graduate of Dickinson College with an MBA from Boston University, he is a member of the United Nations’ Broadband Commission for Sustainable Development and sits on the board of Kymeta Corp.

H. BRIAN THOMPSON

FOUNDER AND EXECUTIVE CHAIRMAN OF THE BOARD, GTT COMMUNICATIONS INC., MCLEAN

An international telecommunications industry leader, Thompson founded GTT Communications, which provides high-speed internet and cloud networking services to more than 144 countries.

After graduating from the University of Massachusetts and earning his MBA from Harvard Business School in 1968, he began a career mostly in telecommunications — and wrote the book on it in 2013: “The Red Thread: My Fortunate Life in Telecommunications.”

GTT is currently undergoing a leadership transition. A search is underway to replace CEO Richard D. Calder Jr., who stepped down this year.

The company brought in $1.73 billion in revenue in 2019 and manages more than 200,000 client devices. At the end of 2019, GTT announced the acquisition of KPN International, a Dutch telecom and IT provider, for $55.4 million.

Thompson also heads his own private equity investment and advisory firm, Vienna-based Universal Telecommunications Inc. In the 1990s,
he co-chaired a multinational commission to chart the role of the private sector in developing telecommunications infrastructure.

He has served on the boards of the Lab School of Washington, the St. Stephen’s and St. Agnes School Foundation and Penske Automotive Group Inc.

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